Dr. Ciara Reynolds:

I bring members' attention to the Road Safety Authority's report, Road Deaths and Alcohol 2013-2017. Over that period, 600 of the 705 road traffic collision fatalities were captured in the data set out in the report. Of that number, 36.5% of fatalities had a positive toxicity for alcohol. This means one third of drivers killed in Ireland who had their blood tested had alcohol present. Of the 219 road user fatalities with a positive toxicology for alcohol, 86% were male, 76% were under 45 years of age and 69% had a blood alcohol concentration of greater than 150 mg per millilitre, which is three times over the legal limit. In addition, the report showed that 65% of the collisions took place between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. The most common day for fatal collisions to occur was Sunday, with the most common time of collision on that day being between 12 a.m. and 7 a.m.