Professor Denis Cusack:

Investment where it can make the most difference is very important.

Speed has to be proportionate. I can talk about the N59 in Galway. Great work has been done between Oughterard and Maam. The limit is 100 km/h. That certainly will not be brought down, as is the case when you invest. However, I stress again that when you see 80 km/h, it is not a target; is a limit. There are times, particularly during heavy rain, when you really have to slow down. I was driving out to Dublin Airport and it was great to see that the speed recommendation for the M50 had dropped. I literally saw it drop from 100 km/h to 80 km/h because of the high volume of rain. Again, we have to get the message across that, even if we reduce the limits on dangerous roads, the M50s to the N99s, you do not have to hit those limits. Part of the problem is that while we stay under the limit, we are all inclined to drive close to it. Some of the great studies from the RSA suggest that if you increase your speed over a few hours by 5 km/h, you actually arrive at your destination only a very small number of minutes earlier. Even I was astonished by that. These are the sorts of questions that need to be considered. Is your life worth ten minutes?