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Welcome to the latest edition of AA News, the online newsletter from AA Ireland. Thanks to all of you who have been in touch by email. Lots of people responded to our request for examples of bad speed limits around the country, which we will now try to have rectified. Plenty of people also concerned about the price of petrol and diesel. Next month's mini-budget is likely to contain more bad news for us as well. Still, hopefully the weather is picking up and certainly the days are getting longer. Spring is in the air; let's hope it's a sign that things are starting to cheer up.

If you have any views or any suggestions as to topics that we should cover please email me directly by clicking here publicaffairs@aaireland.ie

Conor Faughnan, Director of Policy, AA Ireland

Bad speed limits are a blight up and down the country. In the last ezine, we asked people to get in touch and report poorly set speed limits wherever they encounter them. There are some choice examples, as you can see in the photo. A poorly set speed limit, whether too high or too low, is worse than useless. It brings the system into disrepute, catches ordinary people out and encourages us all to ignore the signs. We are building a list of the worst locations which will be pressing the relevant local authorities to fix.

With new car sales figures having fallen off a cliff, what is the Irish motorist doing? Many of us are simply postponing a purchase until less uncertain times and carrying on in the aging car that we have. But a great many people are opting to buy second hand. If you are careful it can be a very good way to go and there are major savings at the moment. Dealers are so desperate for sales that there are terrific bargains to be had. But please be careful... what looks like a great deal could be buying your way into a world of problems.

The government has announced that there will be new budget measures announced in the first week of next month. With the lamentable state of the public finances, the AA warns that motorist is in the firing line as the 'old reliable', as in days of old. At a minimum it seems inevitable that there will be increases in fuel excise duties, and look out for other measures as well.

The European Commission is to investigate fuel prices in Ireland and elsewhere amid allegations that oil price falls are not being faithfully passed on. Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes said that she was responding to representations from Europe's motoring organisations conveyed via the umbrella-group Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) of which AA Ireland is an active member.

“AA Ireland was the first to call for this last May, just as prices were soaring. Ourselves and the Austrian club - the OAMTC - led the push for it.” Says Conor Faughnan. “Irish wholesale prices are 20% higher than the European average.”

Dublin City Council is currently asking the public what they think of an idea to effectively remove all private cars from College Green, Dame Street and Westmoreland Street. This is not as dramatic as it sounds. In fact there are relatively few cars left in that central area since both the right-hand turn ban at the bottom of Georges Street and the restrictions in O'Connell Street came into force some years ago. In theory, the measure will greatly assist Dublin Bus and will see much improved services, but then we have heard that before, writes Conor Faughnan.

The K Club has retained its elite rating of 5 AA Red Stars. This is the highest standard that can be attained by any Hotel in Ireland, and the Kildare venue has now achieved the top rating for a record 15 consecutive years.

“Hotels do not get better than 5 Red Stars; it’s the pinnacle.” Says Conor Faughnan. “Attaining and keeping the standard for such a long period is absolutely remarkable. It could not have been achieved without sustained and devoted commitment on the part of the owners, management and staff at the K Club.”

The proposal for a €200 levy on workplace car parking has been put on indefinite hold. The measure was announced in October's budget and immediately criticised by the AA as being unhelpful and unworkable. This has proved to be true. The plan would have seen the new levy imposed on any employee provided with a car parking space at work in a city. Among many practical problems, there is no clear definition of what constitutes a city. There was also all sorts of confusion in prospect because of the entitlements of shift workers, part time workers, shared spaces and occasional users. Even if it had been successful it would have raised no more than €10m. A bad idea from the outset, it now seems set to be consigned to history.

The great majority of women prefer to let their men do the driving when abroad on holidays, according to AA research. 71.4% of men drive ‘most or all of the time’ while on a foreign holiday, only 19.4% of women did so. 9% of respondents said that they shared the driving equally.
The research comes from the AA’s latest Motorists Panel research which surveyed the views of over 10,500 motorists on a range of issues.

Car parks can be crowded... If you are heading to Dublin, consider the Q-Park facility on Usher's Quay (opposite the Four Courts). There is a special rate of €3 for St. Patrick's Day and it tends not to be as crowded as the others. Q-Park have facilities nationwide and we will soon be announcing an ongoing offer to AA Members.

Over half of all AA Members will drive a car abroad at some stage this year, usually on the main family holiday. According to an AA Motorist's Panel survey, 18% will drive in Britain, 29% somewhere in Europe and 7.6% in North America. The AA would like to learn more about what people need. The AA is also looking into the area of providing a service for home emergencies. If the car breaks down you know who to call. What about a plumbing leak? Or a football breaking a window? Or a blocked drain?
We would like to ask you to spend a few minutes answering some survey questions for us. These are commercial in nature, rather than concerning AA Public Policy. It should literally take less than three minutes, and if you can oblige please click here.