S.I. No. 673/2011 - Road Traffic (Traffic and Parking) (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2011.

Notice of the making of this Statutory Instrument was published in

“Iris Oifigiúil” of 27th December, 2011.

I, LEO VARADKAR, Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport in exercise of the powers conferred on me by sections 3 and 35 (as amended by section 89 of the Road Traffic Act 2010 (No. 25 of 2010)) of the Road Traffic Act 1994 (No. 7 of 1994) and the National Roads and Road Traffic (Transfer of Departmental Administration and Ministerial Functions) Order 2002 (No. 298 of 2002) (as adapted by the Transport (Alteration of Name of Department and Title of Minister) Order 2011 ( S.I. No. 141 of 2011 )), hereby make the following regulations:

1. (1) These Regulations may be cited as the Road Traffic (Traffic and Parking) (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2011.

(2) The collective citation “Road Traffic (Traffic and Parking) Regulations 1997 to 2011” includes these Regulations.

2. A reference in these Regulations to a traffic sign is a reference to that traffic sign specified in the Road Traffic (Signs) Regulations 1997 to 2011 and any number referred to in association with a traffic sign is the number allocated to the sign in those Regulations.

3. Article 47 of the Road Traffic (Traffic and Parking) Regulations 1997 ( S.I. No. 182 of 1997 ) is amended—

(a) by substituting for paragraphs (3), (4) and (5) (each amended by Article 9 of the Road Traffic (Traffic and Parking) (Amendment) Regulations 1998 ( S.I. No. 274 of 1998 )) the following:

“(3) A pedal cyclist facing traffic sign number RTS 006 or RTS 007 (cycle traffic lights) in which one lamp is lit and which shows a symbol of a pedal cycle in green, may proceed beyond that traffic sign provided no other road user is endangered.

(4) Where traffic sign number RTS 006 or RTS 007 (cycle traffic lights) is provided, and a lamp in that traffic sign is lit and shows a symbol of a pedal cycle in red, a person shall not drive a pedal cycle past the traffic sign.

(5) Where traffic sign number RTS 006 is provided and a lamp in the traffic sign is lit on an intermittent basis showing a symbol of a pedal cycle in green or where traffic sign number RTS 007 is provided and a lamp in that traffic sign is lit and shows a symbol of a pedal cyclist in amber, pedal cyclists may not cross the road unless they had begun to do so while a lamp showing a symbol of a pedal cycle in green was lit on a constant basis.”,

and

(b) by inserting after paragraph (5) the following:

“(6) Where an amber lamp in traffic sign number RTS 007 is lit on an intermittent basis, a person driving a pedal cycle may only proceed past the cycle traffic light where right of way is yielded to any pedestrian who has begun to cross the roadway or the cycle track at the traffic lights.”.

GIVEN under my Official Seal,

20 December 2011.

LEO VARADKAR ,

Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Instrument and does not purport to be a legal interpretation)

These Regulations amend the Road Traffic (Traffic and Parking) Regulations of 1997 and 1998 and provide for the regulation of pedal cyclists when using traffic lights for pedal cyclists. The traffic lights for pedal cyclists are prescribed road traffic signs — number RTS 006 has two lamps (red above green) and number RTS 007 has three lamps (red above amber and green). The lamps in these lights, when lit, display a symbol of a pedal cycle. These Regulations set out the rules for the use of these traffic lights to state when pedal cyclists may proceed, must stop or must yield right of way. These Regulations introduce a new regulatory provision to provide that when the amber lamp in RTS 007 is lit on an intermittent basis (i.e. is flashing) a cyclist must yield right of way to any pedestrian who has begun to cross the roadway or cycle track.