The detection of motorists breaking red lights in Galway City has been slammed as “miserable” by a local councillor.

A report presented to members of the City Joint Policing Committee (JPC) set out that while there had been a 14% increase in the numbers detected by gardaí, just 100 offenders have been caught driving through the lights in the first nine months of 2023.

Cllr Frank Fahy (FG) said the level of red light-breaking in the city was far higher than the figures might suggest.

“The figures we have here are miserable . . . there’s no correlation between what’s happening and what’s being detected,” he said.

Galway City Community Network representative on the JPC, Tommy Flaherty, expressed similar disappointment and questioned why previous requests to use cameras to detect the practice were falling on deaf ears.

“Red light cameras are the perfect way of detecting this,” said Mr Flaherty, adding that their introduction was in the remit of City Hall and not the gardaí.

“I am proposing to call on City Council to get a trial of red-light cameras going in Galway,” he said.

Chair of the JPC, Cllr Níall McNelis (Lab), questioned if the laws were in place to facilitate their usage but Mr Flaherty said a trial for their use had already been completed in Dublin.

Responding to calls for red-light cameras, Chief Superintendent Gerry Roche said: “We will look at that.”

Cllr Donal Lyons (Ind) said there had been “a lot about drivers going through red lights, but not a lot about cyclists going through red lights”.

“I have seen three incidents recently where a pedestrian has been nearly knocked down,” he said.