Truck driver cleared of dangerous driving in Mayo despite claim by Garda reservist

A complaint of dangerous driving against a truck driver near Bohola was made by an off-duty member of the Garda Reserve

By Anton McNulty Published 4th Jun 2026, 17:00 BST A truck driver was cleared of dangerous driving in Castlebar District Court | File pic A complaint of dangerous driving against a truck driver near Bohola was made by an off-duty member of the Garda Reserve Sign up to our Mayo Live newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know you can manage your profile, and explore all of the available newsletters from Mayo Live within your account.

A truck driver who was reported by an off-duty member of the Garda Reserve of dangerous driving along the N5 in Mayo was cleared of the offence by a judge.

Barry Caffrey of The Avenue, Ratoath, Co Meath appeared before Castlebar District Court where he pleaded not guilty to dangerous driving along the N5 near Bohola on January 27, 2025.

The court heard evidence from Christopher Toner, a member of the Garda Reserve, who accused Mr Caffrey of trying to force him off the road when trying to overtake him between Ballyvary and Bohola.

Mr Toner explained that between 10.30 and 11am he was travelling from Castlebar to Swinford and after leaving Ballyvary he noticed a truck coming up behind him at high speed. He said at every opportunity the truck tried to overtake him and claimed on one occasion he did so on a 'long sweeping left hand bend' on a continuous white line which forced oncoming traffic onto the hard shoulder. He claimed the truck was so close to him he could not read the number plate.

He said that on another occasion, the truck came parallel with his van which he claimed forced him to pull left quickly. He said at that stage he called 999 to report the overtaking manoeuvre which he said he considered to be dangerous.

Judge Ciarán Liddy also heard evidence from Mr Toner that outside Bohola, the truck came behind a car and claimed it bullied the car to pull into the hard shoulder.

Mr Toner said he followed the truck to the Applegreen service station near Swinford and wrote down contemporaneous notes of what he witnessed before he went to talk to the driver.

Mr Toner claimed the driver said he was in a rush as he had only five minutes left on his tachograph and added that other drivers should have a bit of respect when they see 'trucks up their arse' and pull over.

Mr Caffrey denied the allegations against him and later made a complaint against Mr Toner's driving saying he was driving while on his mobile. He also claimed that Mr Toner was driving slowly and would then accelerate when he tried to overtake.

Mr Evan O'Dwyer, solicitor for Mr Caffrey said his client was only permitted to drive at 80km per hour and the truck was limited to 90km per hour. When questioned by Mr O'Dwyer, the witness admitted driving while using his phone but stated this was while on a 999 call and he is permitted to do so.

Mr Toner also denied the allegations against him by Mr Caffrey and the court heard that Mr Toner was not prosecuted for these alleged offences.

Garda Dolores Walsh said that gardaí in Swinford received an allegation of dangerous driving along the N5 at 10.30am but did not detect the truck. She said she later spoke to Mr Toner and subsequently discovered that Mr Caffrey was the driver.

In his evidence Mr Caffrey said he had driven down to Dublin to Westport that morning and was on his way to the service station in Swinford to park up for 45 minutes to comply with the tachograph regulations.

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He claimed when he came behind Mr Toner's camper van, it was travelling at around 60-65km per hour and claimed he waited behind until it was safe to overtake. He claimed the camper van was over and back along the road and guessed the driver was on a mobile phone.

Mr Caffrey claimed that when he would try to overtake, the driver of the campervan would 'put the foot down'.

He told Judge Caffrey that he had ten minutes to get to the service station before he had to stop the truck and did not want to park on the side of the road.

Mr Caffrey said that in his job he could not afford to be stuck behind a vehicle travelling at 60-65km per hour in a 100km zone because he would not be able to get his deliveries done in time and he would be sacked.

In his summary, Judge Liddy said he had listened carefully to the evidence of both Mr Caffrey and Mr Toner and in the absence of any independent evidence he had to give the benefit to Mr Caffrey and dismissed the charge against him.