Road Traffic Act 2004

Special speed limits.

9

9.—(1) A county council or a city council may make bye-laws F8[] specifying in respect of any specified public road or specified part of a public road or specified carriageway or lane of a public road F9[other than a national managed road, part of a national managed road or carriageway or lane of a national managed road] within its administrative area the speed limit F8[] which shall be the speed limit on that road or those roads for mechanically propelled vehicles.

(2) The special speed limits that may be specified in bye-laws under this section are—

F10[(a) (i) 20 kilometres per hour,

(ii) 30 kilometres per hour, and

(iii) 40 kilometres per hour,

in respect of a road or roads in accordance with guidelines issued by the Minister under F11[section 10D],]

(b) 50 kilometres per hour, in respect of any road other than a road in a built-up area,

(c) 60 kilometres per hour,

(d) 80 kilometres per hour, in respect of a motorway, a national road or a road in a built-up area,

(e) 100 kilometres per hour, in respect of a motorway, a non-urban regional or local road or a road in a built-up area, and

(f) 120 kilometres per hour, in respect of a dual carriageway that forms part of a national road that is not a motorway in accordance with guidelines issued by the Minister under F11[section 10D]

(3) Before making special speed limit bye-laws a county council or city council shall give notice to—

(a) the council of any borough or town in the administrative county concerned of any provision in the proposed bye-laws relating to roads in their respective administrative areas, and

(b) the Commissioner, and

shall consider any representations made in writing by any such council or the Commissioner where they are received within the period (not being less than one month after the date of service of the notice) specified in the notice.

(4) Whenever a county council or city council having considered any representations under subsection (3), proposes to make bye-laws under this section, the following provisions have effect—

(a) the council shall publish notice of the proposal at least once in at least 2 daily newspapers published in and circulating in the State or the area to which the bye-laws relate,

(b) the notice shall include—

(i) a statement of the purpose for which the bye-laws are to be made,

(ii) an intimation that a copy of draft bye-laws is open for public inspection at the address stated in the notice, and

(iii) an intimation that any person may submit to the council objections to the draft bye-laws at any time during the period of 30 days commencing on the date of the first publication of the notice,

(c) the council shall, during that period of 30 days, keep a copy of the draft bye-laws open for public inspection during ordinary office hours at the address stated in the notice,

(d) any person who objects to the draft bye-laws may submit his or her objection to the council in writing at any time during that period of 30 days and the council shall consider the objections.

(5) In making special speed limit bye-laws under this section a county council or city council may, in the interests of road safety, apply a special speed limit for a specified period or periods during any day or during specified days (such periods and days being indicated in such bye-laws) on a specified road or specified motorway or part of it and such special speed limit shall, notwithstanding any other provision in the said bye-laws relating to any such road or motorway or part of it, be the speed limit for that road for that period or periods only.

(6) F8[]

(7) A county council or city council shall not make bye-laws under this section relating to a national road or a motorway without the prior written consent of the National Roads Authority.

(8) The Minister may make regulations in relation to all or any of the following matters:

(a) the varying of the speed limits standing specified in subsection (2) and that subsection shall have effect in accordance with any such regulations for the time being in force; or

(b) the exemption of a class or classes of mechanically propelled vehicles from a specified speed limit or from all of the speed limits specified or having effect under this section.

(9) F8[]

(10) The making of special speed limit bye-laws under this section and the making of representations under subsection (3)(a) are reserved functions (within the meaning of the Act of 2001).

(11) Where special speed limit bye-laws F9[under this section] apply a special speed limit to a specified public road or specified part of a public road or specified carriageway or lane of a public road, that speed limit does not apply where a road works speed limit order is made in respect of the public road, part, carriageway or lane of it.

(12) A document which purports to be a copy of special speed limit bye-laws F9[under this section], and which has endorsed on it a certificate purporting to be signed by an officer of the county council or city council which made the bye-laws stating that the document is a true copy of the bye-laws and that the bye-laws were in force on a specified day, shall, without proof of the signature of such officer or that he or she was in fact such officer, be evidence, until the contrary is shown, in every court and in all legal proceedings, of the bye-laws and of the fact that they were in force on that date.

F9[(13) Where—

(a) a speed limit specified in bye-laws under this section is the speed limit on a road for mechanically propelled vehicles, and

(b) the Minister designates such road or a part thereof as a national managed road,

the speed limit specified in bye-laws under this section in respect of the road shall continue to be the speed limit on that road for mechanically propelled vehicles until the National Roads Authority makes bye-laws under section 9A specifying a speed limit for mechanically propelled vehicles in respect of that national managed road or part thereof.]

Annotations

Amendments:

F8

Deleted (31.07.2023) by Road Traffic and Roads Act 2023 (16/2023), s. 53(a)(i), (c), (d), S.I. No. 392 of 2023, art. 2(h).

F9

Inserted (31.07.2023) by Road Traffic and Roads Act 2023 (16/2023), s. 53(a)(ii), (e)-(g), S.I. No. 392 of 2023, art. 2(h).

F10

Substituted (13.04.2017) by Road Traffic Act 2016 (21/2016), s. 22, S.I. No. 129 of 2017.

F11

Substituted (31.07.2023) by Road Traffic and Roads Act 2023 (16/2023), s. 53(b)(i), (ii), S.I. No. 392 of 2023, art. 2(h).

F12

Deleted by Road Traffic Act 2024 (10/2024), s. 10(a), (d), not commenced as of date of revision.

F13

Substituted by Road Traffic Act 2024 (10/2024), s. 10(b), (c), not commenced as of date of revision.

Modifications (not altering text):

C17

Prospective affecting provision: subss. (2)(b), (d), (e) amended and (2)(c) substituted by Road Traffic Act 2024 (10/2024), s. 10(a), (b), (c), (d), not commenced as of date of revision.

(2) The special speed limits that may be specified in bye-laws under this section are—

F10[(a) (i) 20 kilometres per hour,

(ii) 30 kilometres per hour, and

(iii) 40 kilometres per hour,

in respect of a road or roads in accordance with guidelines issued by the Minister under F11[section 10D],]

(b) 50 kilometres per hour, F12[]

F13[(c) 60 kilometres per hour, in respect of any road other than a local road,]

(d) 80 kilometres per hour, in respect of a motorway, F13[a national road, a local road] or a road in a built-up area,

(e) 100 kilometres per hour, in respect of a motorway, a F12[] regional or local road or a road in a built-up area, and

...

C18

References to “county council”, “city council” and “town council” construed (1.06.2014) by Local Government Reform Act 2014 (1/2014), ss. 9(2) and 25(2), S.I. No. 214 of 2014.

Cesser and amalgamation of certain local government areas

9.— ...

(2) Except where otherwise provided for by this Act, a reference, however expressed, in any enactment—

(a) to a county council or a city council (including a reference construed by section 3(2) of, and Schedule 2 to, the Principal Act as a reference to a county council or to a city council, as the case may be) shall, if the context permits, be read as a reference to a county council, a city council or a city and county council, and

(b) to a county council and a city council (including a reference so construed) shall, if the context permits, be read as a reference to a county council, a city council and a city and county council.

...

Dissolution of town councils — consequential provisions

25.— ...

(2) A function of a town council (including a reference construed by section 3(2) of, and Schedule 2 to, the Principal Act as a reference to a town council and whether of general application to town councils or otherwise under an enactment) that—

(a) has not been repealed or otherwise provided for by this Act, or

(b) is neither spent nor obsolete,

shall, if the context permits in respect of one or more than one town council concerned, be read as a reference to a function of the local authority in whose administrative area the town council so dissolved is situated.

...

C19

Reserved function to be performed by local authority prescribed (1.06.2014) by Local Government Act 2001 (37/2001), ss. 131-131A and sch. 14A part 3 ref. no. 66, as inserted by Local Government Reform Act 2014 (1/2014), s. 21(4) and sch. 3, S.I. No. 214 of 2014.

SCHEDULE 14A

Section 131 and 131A

...

PART 3

Reserved Functions to be Performed by the Local Authority

Reference No.

(1)

Description of reserved function

(2)

Provision under which reserved function is conferred

(3)

...

...

...

66

The making of special speed limit bye-laws.

Section 9 of the Road Traffic Act 2004.

...

...

...