Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Thursday, 16 April 2015

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications

General Scheme of Road Traffic Bill 2015: Discussion

2:30 pm

Photo of Noel HarringtonNoel Harrington (Cork South West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the officials from the Department and the Medical Bureau of Road Safety and thank them for their presentations.

Regarding the distracted driving section in the Bill, the Garda has stated that it is difficult to bring a prosecution for texting, for example. Under this legislation, however, even texting on a device in a handheld cradle will be covered. Increasingly, mobile telephones in cradles are being used as satellite navigation devices. Insurance companies use applications to gauge driving behaviour, particularly of younger drivers, with a view to providing discounts, for example, Aviva. The departmental officials referred to SMS messaging, but there is more to the issue. Will we reach the point of having to proscribe many different mobile telephone processes or applications? When one starts listing things, one leaves out others. What are the officials' opinions in this regard?

Regarding the employer’s test for intoxicants, the departmental officials might outline what is involved. They mentioned railways. Have they sought or will they seek legal advice on issues arising with testing schemes introduced by employers? Would an employer be liable for any accident that occurred after a driver had been tested? Would employers become criminally or civilly liable due to equipment failure or some other failure?

I presume local authorities will be empowered to make by-laws or do whatever they need to do to introduce the special speed limits of 20 km/h in some areas that will be permitted under this legislation.

I would like to put a few questions to the representatives of the Medical Bureau of Road Safety. They spoke about the balancing of rights. Obviously, nobody wants to be stopped or delayed too often by being asked for samples, etc. A suite of different drugs require different testing and sampling regimes. They have different effects and different timescales apply to them. In alcohol situations, the medical bureau can be very definitive about the blood alcohol level. I believe that is never questioned. Prosecutions fail for different reasons. There are many variables in the drug-testing regime. Impaired driving can lead to testing. I am not sure how we can provide for solid legislation that will allow for a reasonable number of prosecutions in this area. Have we tested all of that out?

Reference has been made to prescribed drugs. I agree that when drugs are listed in the legislation, there are always drugs that are left out. It is then a matter for the Garda to say it is a case of impaired driving and it goes back into the system. Loophole after loophole arises, in my opinion, when we try to provide for something like that in legislation. We have a difficulty when we are providing for legislation in the full knowledge that it will be very difficult for it to succeed, or for the Director or Public Prosecutions to take a prosecution on the basis of it, because there are so many variables in the testing. Maybe the witnesses can address those questions.

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