The number of motorists penalised in Clare for holding a mobile phone while driving has dropped by more than 60 percent in two years.
62 people were brought to court and convicted for the offence in this county last year.
Figures released to the Social Democrats via a parliamentary question to the Department of Justice show there were 396 people before the courts in Clare who were convicted of the offence between the beginning of 2018 and the end of March of this year.
The vast majority of these motorists were tried in Ennis – over 80 percent – with the rest having their sittings in either Killaloe or Kilrush.
166 offences were recorded in Clare back in 2018 according to Minister for Justice Heather Humphreys – this dropped to 135 in 2019.
It fell again by more than 50 percent in 2020 – though that was in a year when traffic volumes were greatly reduced for large parts as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
33 motorists were convicted of using a mobile phone while driving in this county in the first three months of this year – more than half of last year’s total, suggesting any decrease in 2020 will be negated by a jump in 2021.
