Taoiseach Micheál Martin has announced that proposed legislation to outlaw scramblers in public spaces will be named Grace’s Law.
Speaking as he arrived for Cabinet, he said the idea followed a proposal from the mother of Grace Lynch, reports RTE.
The 16-year-old died last month after being struck by a scrambler in Finglas, Dublin.
Minister for Transport Darragh O’Brien has put forward measures to introduce a complete ban on scramblers in public areas and to reinforce existing powers allowing gardaí to enforce the rules, reports RTE.
The ban is expected to come into force within weeks, and in the interim, plans have been suggested to amend regulations to raise the daily charges applied to seized scramblers.
Under the new rules, clearer legal definitions will be introduced, explicitly banning all scramblers from being used in public places, reports RTE.
These measures will supplement current legislation, which already prohibits the use of most scramblers in such locations.
Ministers also plan to simplify the process for seizing scramblers and introduce steps to ensure the vehicles are destroyed once confiscated, reports RTE.
Speaking on arrival at Government Buildings, Tánaiste Simon Harris said scramblers are being used to “intimidate communities” and pose a “very significant danger” in terms of road safety,
“If you use a scrambler on a public road or public space, that should be seized and should be destroyed,” he said, reports RTE.
“This can’t be a question of taking the scrambler off someone for a few hours, somebody going back and asking that they have it back,” he added.
Mr Harris said it was “not acceptable” that the changes were not brought in sooner, reports RTE.
“There was provision in relation to banning them from public spaces, and it seems a lot that was never commenced,” he said.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin told the Dáil last week that legislation passed in 2023 already allowed for scramblers and quad bikes to be banned from roads through regulation by the Minister for Transport, which he said “is going to happen”, reports RTE.
Additional regulations are also being prepared for e-bikes and e-scooters, including compulsory helmet use and high-visibility clothing.
Fianna Fáil Councillor for Ballymun-Finglas Keith Connolly said at the time of Grace’s death that changes made last year, allowing gardaí to seize scramblers from private property without a warrant if linked to anti-social behaviour, did not go far enough, reports RTE.
Grace was hit by a scrambler on the Ratoath Road between Scribblestown and Dunsink on Sunday 25 January. She was taken to Connolly Hospital Blanchardstown, where she later died from her injuries.
In 2023, amendments to the Road Traffic Act 1994 were introduced to strengthen accountability and address dangerous driving in public spaces and on roads, reports RTE.
The revised legislation made it illegal to drive dangerously in any public place — not only on public roads — a change aimed particularly at scramblers and quad bikes, and also required all scramblers on public roads to display tax, have insurance, and be operated by someone aged over 16, reports RTE.
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