Andrew Carey
A LIMERICK councillor has warned of the dangers of using a mobile phone while driving after he was fined for the offence at Limerick District Court last Monday.
39-year-old Fianna Fail city and county councillor Shane Clifford from Castleconnell was seen by Gardaí to be holding his mobile while driving at Plassey Road on February 14 last at the height of his local election campaign.
He was issued with a fixed charge penalty which he failed to pay on time – he submitted payment one day later than the cut off point – and a summons was issued for him to appear before Limerick District Court earlier this week.
He was fined €100 by Judge Eugene O’Kelly and given four weeks to pay. He will also be issued with two penalty points.
After his brief court appearance, Cllr Clifford said he learned his lesson and warned against others making a similar kind of mistake of using a mobile phone while driving.
He said he had just bought a new phone and had not been able to connect it to his hands free kit and was detected during a nationwide crackdown on mobile phone usage.
“It’s a lesson learned and it is all about road safety”, he said.
In a Facebook post on Monday night, Cllr Clifford added a link to the RSA website outlining the dangers of using a mobile phone while driving and said: “I received a €100 fine at the District Court in Limerick earlier today for using my mobile phone while driving home from work last February. I have a car kit, but my new phone had not been set up on it at the time”.
According to the Road Safety Authority, drivers are four times more likely to crash when using a phone in the car. Please either invest in a car kit or switch off your phone before you get into the car.”
