‘Cork needs number-plate recognition cameras’, says city councillor 

The introduction of traffic cameras with automatic number-plate recognition must be prioritised for Cork, says the chair of Cork City Council’s transport committee.

Labour Party councillor Peter Horgan is advocating the overhaul of public transport in Cork city.

Dublin City Council have stated that traffic cameras to catch drivers breaking red lights will be introduced early in 2025. 

The cameras will photograph registrations of cars that do not stop at a red light.

Mr Horgan wants similar traffic cameras, with automatic number-plate recognition, being fast-tracked for Cork, too.

Congestion

“We have a constant congestion issue, which cannot be policed, because the commissioner refuses to allocate additional gardaí to Cork city,” said Mr Horgan.

“Utilising these cameras can assist to stop the breaking of traffic rules, like yellow-box stalling at junctions, breaking red lights, and enforcing the Patrick Street bus corridor.

“I will be seeking the new CEO of the National Transport Authority to provide funding to install and bring into operation these cameras as a matter of priority for Cork.”

There was a successful six-month trial in 2015, when the traffic cameras were in north inner-city Dublin on traffic lights at the junction of Blackhall Place and the Luas red line.

The number of drivers breaking the red light decreased by half in the second three months of the trial, the study found.