[Article] Trucker fined for leaving scene of Dart cable crash

[Colm Moore]

Original thread. http://www.railusers.ie/forum/showthread.php?t=11743

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/...320449774.html

Trucker fined for leaving scene of Dart cable crash
TOM TUITE

A TRUCK driver who fled the scene after he crashed into overhead Dart cables at a level crossing in Dublin has been fined €500.

About 800m of wiring was torn away after being snagged by a crane on a lorry passing through the Merrion gates, Dublin 4, on December 30th, 2009. It had been the most significant damage to overhead lines in a single incident in the history of the Dart and disrupted services for about 15,000 commuters for a day and a half.

Eamon Cosgrove (47), Grove Lodge, Bay Lane, Kilshane, Dublin, was fined after he pleaded guilty yesterday to careless driving and failing to remain at the scene after a collision.

Garda Victoria Montgomery told Judge Alan Mitchell at Dublin District Court that Cosgrove turned his lorry on to the Merrion gates. A crane on his lorry had not been lowered properly and there was a collision with overhead cables, Judge Mitchell was told.

Cosgrove left the scene, but contacted gardaí the next day to make a statement. Garda Montgomery accepted Cosgrove was “shocked” at what happened and that it had devastating effects on him.

In pleading for leniency, Cosgrove’s lawyer said his marriage had since broken down and that he had had a successful business delivering containers but that this had failed. The court heard he was remorseful and that he had made “a terrible error” in not retracting the crane. The judge was asked to note Cosgrove had no previous convictions nor any penalty points.

The lawyer said it was “a panic situation”, as Cosgrove had pulled in down the road but felt intimidated as people were coming out of houses and taking photographs.

The judge said he had clearly suffered sufficient trauma.

[James Howard]

Aww - the poor lamb.

Maybe the judge should read the article (15 thousand people disrupted). This man has no business operating a Heavy Goods Vehicle if he isn't capable of securing it for a journey. And then he compounded it by leaving the scene.

This just continues if there are no consequences. 500 euro doesn't count - less than a week's diesel for a truck.