End of the road for Garda Trendy
Four Segways donated to patrol the capital now held in storage
SEGWAY electric scooters that were given to gardaí by Dublin business groups have been taken out of service, with Garda bosses blaming maintenance costs.
The self-balancing, battery-powered devices cost about €6,000 each when two of them were donated by the Dublin City Business Association (DCBA) in 2012, with two more being presented to the Garda for patrols in Dublin 1 and 2 in 2014 by local business group Dublin Town.
With two large wheels and a handle, gardaí from the Force’s mountain bike unit could be seen zooming around on high-visibility patrols reaching a top speed of 20kph.
When the first two Segways were donated, Tom Coffey, chief executive of the DCBA, said he hoped the vehicles would maximise the ‘effectiveness, mobility and visibility’ of gardaí on the city’s streets.
He said the devices were already being used by police officers in 300 cities worldwide, and that if the pilot project was successful it could be rolled out to other urban areas.
However, it later emerged that between 2012 and 2018, the force spent nearly €7,000 on repairs and servicing for the devices, including nearly €3,300 to kit them out with the Garda insignia and blue lights.
Rank-and-file gardaí were also reported to have been unhappy with what they thought was a ‘useless gimmick’ and gardaí on Segway patrol were often ridiculed.
However, it does appear that they attracted positive attention too, with officers regularly stopping to chat with members of the public.
In 2014, Dublin Town chief executive Richard Guiney said his organisation had originally offered to donate bicycles to the gardaí, but that Garda management wanted Segways.
Now the Irish Mail on Sunday can reveal that the four Segways were taken out of service in 2018 and are now in storage, with a Garda spokesman saying this was because of maintenance costs.
A Garda spokesman told the MoS this week: ‘The Segways are assigned to Store Street and Pearse Street Garda Stations and are not in general use.
‘There is a significant maintenance cost associated with them, which compared, in particular to mountain bike maintenance, is excessive for the operational value returned.
‘An Garda Síochána has found the operational use of Segways to be less favourable and adaptable compared to mountain bike patrols.
He said: ‘The Segways are still utilised on some occasions, such as St Patrick’s Day.’
Unlike other e-scooters, which gardaí have started to seize from users as they become increasingly popular, the Segways are legal to use in Ireland because the Garda received permission from the Road Safety Authority.
Insurance for the Garda Segways is covered by a State indemnity.