Laois councillor suggests speed fine raffle prizes 

A SPEEDING fine raffle to reward drivers who obey the speed limits has been suggested by a local councillor.

Cllr Aisling Moran made the novel proposal at a council meeting, saying that a pilot project in Sweden had proved very successful.

She said that GoSafe speed vans recorded all passing vehicles, so it would be easy to identify drivers who obeyed the law. There could be raffle prizes from the proceeds of speeding fines, to encourage people to keep within the speed limit.

At the November meeting of Graiguecullen-Portarlington Municipal District (MD), Cllr Moran said: “The Scandinavian pilot project took a carrot and stick approach, with those under the speed limit entered into a raffle for a cash prize. In three days, the number of speeding fines went down by 22 percent.” 

Cllr Moran said the approach would be more positive and could be more effective than “just taking from everybody and everybody getting angry and annoyed”.

She remarked: “Instead of taking, taking, taking all the time, why not give something for a change? If we could even do it for a month, it might help.” 

Her suggestion came after she proposed that Laois Co Council contact An Garda Síochána and GoSafe, requesting figures on the number of speeding fines issued at Tankardstown on the L3978 from 20 May to 1 November 2025.

She also asked for specifics on the number of cars recorded doing under 80kph and the number doing over 80kph between those dates, as well as a list of rules and regulations for speed vans together with a suggestion to try out the Swedish-style raffle scheme.

At previous council meetings, Cllr Moran complained about “sneaky” speed vans hiding between two trailers on the road from Maganey to Tankardstown, Barrowhouse, just after the official speed limit was reduced from 80kph to 60kph but the 80kph limit remained on Google Maps.

Cllr Moran said the drivers “unfairly” fined and given penalty points were mainly locals. Some now faced disqualification having reached 12 penalty points, after repeatedly passing GoSafe vans on the road.

Cllr Moran told the November meeting that 127 motorists were caught speeding at Tankardstown on the first day, seven more than she previously thought. She estimated that more than 100 were driving at below the previous limit of 80kph.

Independent Cllr Ben Brennan seconded the proposal but didn’t expect a raffle prize or any other change in GoSafe procedures.

He said: “That’s not going to happen here, sure they’re making a fortune. They’re supposed to be for safety but It’s a money making machine and traffic is still not slowing down. But maybe Cllr Moran’s suggestion could work. What we have isn’t working.” 

Cllr Moran agreed and said: “What they are doing is making money but it is not saving lives.” 

After Cllr Moran’s list of requests to An Garda Síochána and GoSafe was agreed, district cathaoirleach Cllr Vivienne Phelan said: “We will write to them and see what comes back.”