Ireland parliament member says high-visibility jackets should be mandatory for all pedestrians
Ireland parliament member says high-visibility jackets should be mandatory for all pedestrians
68 comments
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It should be noted that in rural areas, many roads are unlit and quite winding. Ireland has very high road density with lots of minor roads. Many people walk on these roads which have no path. Use of lights and reflective or hi vis clothing is sensible and already common.
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I can understand. Once I encountered a jogger wearing a completely black outfit in a dark unlit road. The only reason I saw the guy was because there were a few reflective bits on his shoes. That was a nice scare.
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When I was a poor college kid I recalled a Halloween costume joke from an SNL bit. It involved a black hoodie, black sweatpants, and a black ski mask. All I had to purchase was the ski mask. Don my outfit and I became "The Invisible Pedestrian". Used that costume a few years.
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I've come across similar cyclists, no lights, no reflectors, dark clothing. Just borderline suicidal.
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Is wearing hi vis clothing sensible on country roads with no sidewalks? Yes.
Should it be mandatory just to go out on a walk? No. How about we lower speed limits on those roads or create safer roads. Walking is a basic human right (or moving about in whatever way you need to if your body doesn't allow you to walk). Driving a car is not.
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Those roads already have a lower speed limit. I think the geography of the landscape and the neighbouring properties does not allow them to be more visible without loss of scenery.
Roads are designed for transport. Cars can be fatal. It's all well and good to say we should be safer but is wearing appropriate clothing when walking in a shared car pedestrian zone really be that onerous?
We already require the cars to have multiple safety standards to aid pedestrians and visibility. Cyclists are required to wear helmets in many places etc.
I am finding it odd that many comments talk about pedestrian freedom, yet jaywalking is illegal in many places but not in Ireland, where people can use their personal judgement and the cars are held responsible.
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Use of lights and reflective or hi vis clothing is sensible and already common.
Thanks for sharing, would you say accidents happen enough to make this mandatory?
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would you say accidents happen
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Like seatbelts, of it saves lives and is harmless, then why not. If no lives are saved, nobody is worse off. If one life is saved, it's worth it. Like seatbelts laws, the idea is a change in thinking not to fine people for non compliance.
I doubt it will become mandatory. It seems more like a thought bubble. Ireland used to have very high road death figures but has worked hard to change that.
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When my dad visited Dublin and the surrounding area, they were driving by another car on a road with a car they rented and the road was so narrow that the side mirror got knocked right off.
When they returned the car, the rental company was completely nonplussed because it happens so often. Afterwards, they started noticing that a lot of the cars had their mirror missing on the same side.
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Seems like subsidizing free hi vis jackets is the way to go then, and let people decide.
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What about kids? Should we let the parent decide or,.if it's a blatantly obvious way to protect them, should we prosecute parent that don't suitably dress their kids for the risk? Or require it. Personally, o don't have a problem with making it a requirement. Knowing the Irish gardaî, of expect light enforcement.
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Sounds like Ireland should invest some of that money they earn from being a tax-haven into some proper infrastructure.
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I'd propose to introduce a pedestrian's licence, too. Can't have these people just run around without any proper training!
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That website is propaganda group that both fuels and funds far-right movements. They are not journalists, but an influencing machine. The better subs have banned their links.
If you want to read about our asshat politician and this story in particular, it's covered here: https://irishcycle.com/2025/07/05/td-asks-about-making-high-vis-compulsory-for-all-pedestrians-cyclists-and-users-of-school-transport/
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Sure, make it a problem of everyone else. Just please, please, don't inconvenience the car enthusiasts! 😭
What about streets that don't endanger others? Bike lanes that don't cross streets? Dunno, make car drivers drive careful?
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Maybe they should also make it mandatory for pedestrians to carry rocket-propelled grenade launchers, and be trained in their operation.
This would hopefully make car drivers to exercise more caution.
/sarcasm that has an unfortunate chance of becoming reality in a few decades, you just watch
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The historically accurate documentary “Team Fortress” also taught me it’s a GREAT method of transportation
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Well if we're going to unnecessarily inconvenience a group of people, I think a national 5mph limit would have a better effect
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Remember when wales lowered their speed limit and all the car brains went nuts? Yeah, same thing will happen in ireland i would wager.
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We should have a mandatory car with a red flag driving 3m in front of every pedestrian.
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The first cars were required to have a flag man.
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I almost think, I've heard of it. 🙃
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Pedestrians call for mandatory glasses for all driving members of parliament.
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He is not wrong. Makes it way easier to hit pedestrians.
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“Jay walker” propaganda all over again.
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Very common in Ireland. The main contribution of the RSA (Road Safety Authority) over the past few years seems to be handing out high-vis elements to pedestrians and cyclists. The media is antropomorphising cars instead of blaming drivers, to the extent that statistics on the causes of crashes aren't being collected.
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I mean, making sure drivers can see you seems like a very sensible thing to do. I've come across pedestrians on unlit roads, and any sort of high visibility clothing or a light makes them visible from multiple times the distance.
There's a reason cyclists are required to have lights outside of daylight hours where I live.
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Get off the pavement, ya waxy cunt.
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Punishing pedestrians for the danger of cars. Classic car-brain-rot mentality.
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Next up: controlling who you love
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So now our deference to cars is such that we all have to carry an extra garment just to walk the streets? That seems fine. /s
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To be fair, here's only saying that because the tin Man and the lion don't have the heart or the courage to tell him he's missing something.
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All cars should be preceded at a distance of no less than three and no more than six metres by a walking man waving a red flag.
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Hi-viz doesn't do anything. There's no statistical difference in casualty rates between people wearing it and people not. Consider that drivers routinely plow into the back of emergency vehicles stopped by the side of the highway, completely wrapped in hi-viz, reflective material, and with million-lumen flashing lights. This is victim-blaming nonsense.
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Not necessarily true. Hi-viz markings on vehicles have proven to reduce crashes by as much as 20%.
I don’t see why the same logic couldn’t be applied to crashes involving people.
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I'd love to see a source for that claim, because I do drive in rural areas with no street lighting, and high vi's makes a person visible from multiple times the distance.
Also, people driving on the back roads tend to be paying a bit more attention.
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I recommend it. I can't tell you how many times I've had to slam on the breaks because some jackass decided to cross on the middle of a dark street in dark clothes.
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How DARE people move around the landscape in the traditional way that humans have been locomoting for tens of thousands of years without considering YOUR needs!
(That is, if you can't see what's in front of your car, you need to slow down.)
e: typo
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It's inexcusable in an urbanized area, there are crosswalks for a reason. We all have to share this wasteland, Andy while yeah it needs improvements, you're just making it worse by not at least trying to play nice with others.
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68 comments