Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour)

I extend my thanks to all Deputies for their contributions. This is important legislation. I have been pleased by the approach, consistent with successive Dáileanna, whereby parties have worked together in the area of road safety. The issue has not been divisive politically and has been worked on closely by all parties. I have been encouraged by the support for the Bill and I hope it will be enacted and the measures implemented without delay once the legislation has been passed by both Houses.

I trust Deputies will agree there is no doubt we have witnessed vast improvements in road safety in recent years and the country is seeing the benefits of such improvements with ever-reducing numbers of road fatalities. There are many reasons for this. Vehicles are manufactured with the safety imperative in mind and the roads on which we drive are better and safer as well. Government policy has been continually supported through various initiatives which seek to alter driver behaviour, including the introduction of safety cameras and the roll-out of the penalty points system. The law has put the onus on road users to adopt a more responsible attitude, and for the most part the response has been positive.

The Bill is the third tranche of road safety legislation that has been through the Houses in the past year. In 2011, the Government reduced the drink driving limit to zero for all drivers, with an effective zero tolerance for learner, novice and professional drivers. The mandatory alcohol testing provisions were also extended in 2011. Enforcement by the Garda has also played a significant part in road safety improvements, and this work has been robustly supported by the Medical Bureau of Road Safety. A great deal of the progress made during the past five or six years can be attributed to the role of the Road Safety Authority. The authority has brought road safety issues to the forefront of national debate through education, awareness and the drive to raise standards throughout the road safety sector generally. The Bill acknowledges the fundamental role the Road Safety Authority plays in this area and reinforces this role in respect of commercial vehicle roadworthiness testing and driver licensing.

With the support of Members for this legislation we can look forward to further progress in the road safety agenda. This Bill is only one element of a wide-ranging programme that seeks to avoid tragedies involving commercial vehicles. We will never be able to control everything that occurs on the roads but we can make every effort to reduce the chances of such tragedies occurring.

I wish to address the issues raised by some Deputies. Deputy Dooley asked about a possible agreement with Northern Ireland on penalty points. Under the auspices of the North-South Ministerial Council, the Minister, Deputy Varadkar, asked that officials from both jurisdictions examine the possibility of mutual recognition of penalty points. Discussions have begun to try to reach agreement. Four traffic offences will be targeted on a pilot basis: speeding, drink driving, the non-wearing of seat belts and use of mobile phones while driving. The systems for applying penalty points and the supporting legislation are different on both parts of the island and it may take some time to arrive at a mutually acceptable position. However, the work is ongoing and every effort will be made to reach agreement as quickly as possible.

Some Deputies referred to the possibility that drivers from outside the State are dealt with more leniently than Irish truck drivers. The Road Traffic Act 2010 provides for a payment deposit scheme for non-resident drivers who have been stopped for committing offences. The scheme provides for the payment of a deposit by the driver or the impoundment of a vehicle until the deposit is paid. Officials from the Department are working with the Garda and the RSA to agree arrangements for the practical application of the provisions of the Act in order that non-resident drivers or companies will not be given any competitive advantages.

Deputy Dooley referred to road safety education and developments at junior certificate level in schools. The Road Safety Authority's policy is to deliver road user education with a cumulative, age-appropriate approach, commencing in preschool settings, through to third level and into community settings. Road safety education ensures all road users develop appropriate attitudes and safe behaviours. The RSA resources are not compulsory at present but they are aligned with the relevant curriculum strands in each educational setting. It would be of significant benefit if these programmes were made compulsory within the school curriculum. The proposed development of the junior cycle programme presents opportunities for the authority to further develop its existing road safety programme, entitled Streetwise. The programme could be developed to take advantage of the proposed short courses or it could be integrated into the priority learning units outlined in the document entitled Towards a Framework for Junior Cycle. The Minister, Deputy Varadkar, has spoken to the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Quinn, on this matter on many occasions.

Several Deputies queried the overall rationale for the legislation and asked about how the new system would operate. As I remarked in my opening statement, one trigger for the reform of commercial vehicle roadworthiness was the Kentstown bus crash in which five young school girls lost their lives prematurely. The comprehensive review conducted following the tragedy found that a radical transformation of the commercial vehicle roadworthiness testing service was required and that this reform would be best undertaken by a central body. The RSA was tasked with undertaking this reform.

The overall objective is to introduce a far more robust system of testing with higher standards that will be consistent throughout the country. The credentials for operators who wish to become involved in testing vehicles will be stringently examined before approval is given. Any company or person is entitled to apply for the appropriate authorisation. The tests will be supported by random checks of vehicles at premises and roadside checks. The outcome will be a step change in the way we test and maintain our commercial vehicle fleet. It will enhance safety on our roads and improve the reputation of hauliers at home and abroad.

Compliant operators have nothing to fear from these provisions. Indeed, they have welcomed them. Those operating outside the law and gaining a competitive advantage as a result will be exposed and brought within the system through enforcement. Enforcement will be targeted through the use of a risk rating system. Risk ratings will be purely evidence-based and constructed on the basis of roadside, premises and test history inspections. Infringements and non-compliance will be accorded a numeric value. Converting the information captured will be undertaken by a purpose-designed computer program that will calculate a rating for each operator. Factors including the seriousness of the infringement, the number of infringements and the number of checks will be taken into consideration in determining the relative compliance of each operator.

Certain roadside infringements pose more of a significant safety risk than others. For example, problems with steering or braking systems create more of an immediate danger than an operator not correctly displaying a certificate of roadworthiness. A time factor will also be included. This means an operator who commits a high number of offences in a short period will be perceived as posing a greater short-term risk than an operator who commits a number of lesser offences over a longer period. More recent infringements will be accorded a higher weighting than older ones. It is intended that rated operators will have access to their numerical score and how the score is comprised. The system will provide a fair and accurate indication of the safety of the operator's fleet and the operator's compliance with the legislation. Operators who adhere to good practices, hold appropriate records, observe the tachograph and the rules on driver hours and consistently maintain their vehicles to the required standards will reap the benefits as compliance and enforcement activities will be primarily focused on higher risk operators.

Some Deputies raised concerns about the transfer of responsibility for driver licensing from local authorities to the Road Safety Authority. The system of local authorities managing all aspects of driver licensing has served the country well over the years but procedures and processes have changed in recent years and, other than issuing the licence, local authorities are no longer involved in the management or update of the licence details. These procedures will change fundamentally with the introduction of the plastic card licence next year. It would not be feasible or economically sensible to expect that every local authority would have the facility to produce a plastic card licence. The security aspects alone would make this impractical. For this reason, the licence production unit will be centralised.

Following on from that, it makes more sense to centralise the processing arrangements. That will bring consistency to the handling and management of applications and will eliminate the variable practices and inefficiencies of the current system. In addition, transfer of responsibility to the RSA will mean the public will have a one-stop-shop arrangement in respect of driver licences. Issues from theory tests to driving tests to driver licences will be handled by the authority. As well as enhancing the efficiency of the operation, this will lead to clarity and convenience for the public who will have just one State body with which to deal in regard to all driver licence issues.

The RSA is at various stages of conducting procurement processes, first, for the production of plastic card licences, second, for the processing of applications and, third, for front office customer service operations. Some staff from local authorities who are currently working on driver licence issues will be given the opportunity to transfer to the RSA. All other relevant local authority staff will be redeployed within the local authority structure and, in a time of scarce resources, this opportunity will be welcomed by local authority managers. No staff will be made redundant as a result of this transfer.

Under the new system, we should be able to reduce significantly the number of people processing licences and move from a loss making arrangement, which costs local authorities money, to one that will be slightly profitable for the RSA.

With regard to commercial vehicle roadworthiness, CVR, a number of Deputies mentioned approaches from the IMPACT trade union. Any redeployment of local authority staff, in regard to both driver licensing and CVR, is fundamentally a matter for their employers, the local authorities and the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government. Staff members are dealt with under the Croke Park Agreement and therefore there is no question of compulsory redundancies. In some cases there will be redeployment to the RSA, particularly in the north west. In other cases, staff will be redeployed.

As the number of staff in local authorities has reduced dramatically in recent years, more so than in most parts of the public sector, the fact we can now redeploy a significant number of people from laminating and processing licences to other council activities can be seen only as a positive step. In regard to CVR, 22 staff have already moved to the RSA and are working to advance the CVR reform programme.

I should clarify, however, that while the approach is to centralise the administration and management of the CVR testing system, the commercial vehicle test network will continue to be run by individual privately owned test centres located across the country. There are currently 140 of these test centres in operation. The Bill will not change this approach and does not provide for a single service provider in the State.

As Deputies will be aware, the primary purpose of the Bill is to establish a more robust legislative framework for CVR testing, which will support consistency, accuracy and impartiality across the testing system. The RSA will demand consistency in testing through the centralised supervisory approach. The RSA will outsource some of the work on technical inspections and it is likely that this will be delivered consistently across the country in a service that is delivered, as mentioned already, by 140 privately owned test centres. The new regime, upon commencement of the provisions, will apply to the existing test centres and the necessary transitional provision for this arrangement is provided under section 10 of the Bill. These existing test centres will be required to apply for a renewal of their authorisation within 18 months of the commencement of section 10. Any application that was being processed but not determined prior to the commencement of this legislation will be also covered by this section.

A number of Deputies asked about rest areas and parking facilities available to hauliers on motorways. Currently, there are three NRA motorway services areas open to the public, two on the M1 and one on the N4. Negotiations with tenderers for a public private partnership scheme to operate service areas on the N6 near Athlone, the N9 near Kilcullen and the M11 near Gorey are at an advanced stage. The Department is also aware of two other services areas opened recently, one on the N7 near Mayfield and the other on the N8 near Cashel. Other work is also being conducted by the Department, working with the bodies, in regard to that area.

Deputy John Paul Phelan raised the issue of speed limits. The Minister, Deputy Varadkar, recently announced a review of speed limits throughout the country and a group has been set up to work on that. The group is expected to report back to the Minister before the end of the year.

Deputy Ross raised the issue of licence holders. I would point out that learner holders are still required to have a fully qualified driver with them but it is a matter for the Garda to enforce this legislation.

Deputy Naughten raised a number of issues. On plastic card licences, we are confined initially to including only what is provided for in the European Union directive as regards the information on that licence. However, the RSA will include a microchip in the licence on which vital information as referenced by the Deputy can be stored.

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