News
What’s the law for operating e-scooters?

By John Healy of Healy Insurances
The Transport Minister Mr Eamon Ryan is preparing to regulate the use of e-scooters in the coming months.
The current situation is problematic as under the 1961 Road Traffic Act, e-scooters would be classified as mechanically propelled vehicles. This would mean you would need insurance, road tax and a driving licence to use them in a public place.
This raises a number of challenges not least the fact there is currently no insurance market that is insuring e-scooters. So where does the minister go to next? Mr Ryan is believed to be looking at reclassifying the e-scooter devices as “powered personal transporters”. The users would be treated much as a cyclist, once the speed of the scooter is under 25kph.
If this legislation is passed users of e-scooters would not require insurance, road tax or a driving licence to operate the devices in a public place.
Clearly there is much work to be done on the legislation such as minimum age of users, speed of the device, rules around the use of helmets and lights and banning e-scooters from footpaths.
How safe are e-scooters?
According to the most recent Garda figures, there were 791 scooter related incidents last year of which 266 involved a collision. The majority of the incidents occurred in Dublin.
Paris was in the vanguard of major cities to roll out the use of e-scooters for hire and currently has a fleet of 15,000 available through three electric scooter operators. E-scooter accidents have increased in the city, there were 22 deaths last year up from seven in 2020. Parisians will now be invited to vote in a referendum on whether to allow electric scooter rental services to continue operating in the city. This referendum is planned for April 2 next.
Returning to our challenges in Ireland, will Eamon Ryan proceed with the new legislation? It would appear he has little choice, the numbers of e-scooters are rising and the current situation is a legal quagmire.
News
American choir to perform in St Mary’s Cathedral
Music lovers are in for a rare treat on Monday night when a top US choir visits Killarney. The Colquitt Accapella choir under the direction of Mr. Jimmy L. Jarvis […]
Music lovers are in for a rare treat on Monday night when a top US choir visits Killarney.
The Colquitt Accapella choir under the direction of Mr. Jimmy L. Jarvis Jr is from the city of Moultie in the state of Georgia in the United States of America.
The choir performs multiple times a year and also produces and performs a large musical every year, with the latest production being ‘The Addams Family’ which was a sold out success.
The Colquitt Choir will be performing at St Mary’s Cathedral thanks to support form the KDYS.
More information is available from the KDYS on 066 71 21674 or www.kdys.ie
News
HeartBeat’s cook off – be early!
This month HeartBeat Killarney has come up with a new slant on safe cooking. A free copy of the cook book ‘101 Square Meals – Easy recipes for everyday life’ […]

This month HeartBeat Killarney has come up with a new slant on safe cooking.
A free copy of the cook book ‘101 Square Meals – Easy recipes for everyday life’ will be available to all those who come early to the May meeting on Tuesday night.
This book from Safefood which is supported by the HSE & MABS will come to life on the night as chefs from The International Hotel Killarney have very kindly volunteered to cook some of the recipes in the book for a tasting session during the meeting.
Nutritionist Paula Duggan will be on hand to discuss the nutritional benefits of each recipe prepared for tasting. She can also advise on any tweaks required to meet individual tastes and needs.
There will be four main recipes available to taste during the course of the evening; Meat Loaf, Baked Stuffed Fish, Chicken Fingers and Spanish Tortillas. There is a fifth recipe for tasting on the night but all that Chairperson Billy O’Sullivan will say about it is “It will be available at the end of the night with a cup of tea and we hope it will send everyone home with a smile on their face.”
This is a night that the HeartBeat group has worked long and hard to make happen.
“It came together because of the amazing generosity of Tracy Coyne, Catriona White and the wonderful Kitchen Team at the International.” said Billy. In these times when the price of foods has risen dramatically it is still possible to eat healthily with the guidance from this book. There are lots of tips also on food storage, freezing food, kitchen hygiene and food allergens.
HeartBeat meetings are FREE and all are welcome to come along on Tuesday May 30th at 8pm at the Parish Centre beside The Church of the Resurrection Park Road V93 WN32.