Appeal refused after man fails driving test for 10th time

A MOTORIST who appealed against his 10th driving test failure claimed yesterday that the Transport Minister was not doing his job.

Raymond Heffernan, 58, of Mount Brosna, Mayfield, Cork, said repeatedly during his appeal against his latest failure of the driving test: “I am only looking for justice.”

Mr Heffernan said he had been driving safely for 41 years, and had exposed faults that existed in the rules of the road.

When Mr Heffernan arrived back at the test centre at the end of his latest test, the tester, Alec McCarthy, broke the news of his latest test failure. No sooner had he said: “I am very sorry Raymond, you have not been successful on this occasion,” than Mr Heffernan jumped up and subjected him to a barrage of verbal abuse, according to Mr McCarthy.

Judge David Riordan said the issue to be determined at Cork District Court yesterday was whether or not Mr Heffernan had established that there was some malice, oppression or unfairness shown to him.

The judge said such a case had not been established by the appellant and he dismissed the appeal. Mr Heffernan said: “In other words I am telling lies and the gentleman who gave evidence is not. What happens now?” Judge Riordan said, “That is a matter for you, I have refused your appeal.”

Mr Heffernan said, “Thank you. Have a nice day.”

Mr McCarthy said during the driving test, Mr Heffernan was asked to reverse a distance of about two and a half car lengths in a housing estate and that his left rear wheel and left front wheel both mounted the footpath. He said that on a roundabout he drove across the path of a truck. Furthermore, he said the appellant drove through a stop line and stop sign and did not appear to notice the stop.

Mr Heffernan said he showed that the rules of the road had been wrong for 12 years and that this was written about in newspaper articles four years ago, and this was why he was being failed in his driving tests.

As for the particular points in relation to his driving, Mr Heffernan was asked what he had to say about them and he replied: “It didn’t happen.”

Mr Heffernan said if he was driving as dangerously as driving testers seemed to think then he would have been killed by now.