Six truckers who caused rush-hour traffic chaos last Tuesday when they drove a convoy of lorries carrying huge silos through Dublin were fined £150 each yesterday for obstruction. Judge James Scally described their behaviour as "a disgrace" and said he was sorry he could not have imposed heavier penalties.
The six English drivers pleaded guilty to not having a permit to carry abnormal loads, giving rise to obstruction of traffic between Dublin Port and Clonliffe Road. They were: fleet owner John Golding (75), of Kingswood, and Billy Gill (34), of Woodland Road, both Gloucestershire; Bruce Savage (24), of Gaunt Road; Stuart James (28), of Haylize; Paul Dolan (25), of Longhand Stones, and Trevor Smith (57), of Crowes Hall, all Bristol.
Dublin District Court was told gardai from Fitzgibbon Street traffic freeflow unit stopped the convoy on Clonliffe Road at 4 p.m. and found it did not have a permit to allow it to pass through Dublin. The corporation had faxed a permit to the company in England, but it had not been received. This allowed the drivers to pass through the city only between 2 a.m. and 7 a.m. and not along the route they took.