Town gridlock: where was the traffic corps?

DRIVING from Rosslare to Dublin on a recent weekday, it took an hour to get through Gorey at lunchtime, a distance of about one mile. This wasn’t the result of road works or an accident, it was just a normal day’s experience there. I didn’t see a single garda in that hour.

It would not be surprising if many motorists subsequently exceeded the speed limit in an effort to make up for lost time. It’s certainly unlikely to have improved tempers or road manners. Does the Garda Traffic Corps have any responsibility for ensuring that traffic flows as smoothly as possible, or are they just there to catch us when we break the law?

Why is it that you almost never see a garda on point duty unless there’s some politician or visiting dignitary being whisked through, while the rest of us are delayed in the national interest.