Cathal Crowe (Clare, Fianna Fail)

Some weeks ago I made a suggestion in the Dáil which led to praise and criticism but that is what happens. I suggested that in a rural county like mine where there is no Luas, DART or significant public transport, young people in particular are penalised by the requirement to have a fully licensed trained driver in the car with them. It is not very practical in rural areas, particularly when trying to get to college or work. I recognise that the law is well intentioned. It is a good law but its practical application does not work so well. I made my point very much centred on road safety. My mother-in-law was one of the 174 people unfortunately killed in a road traffic accident last November so I am not blind to what needs to happen. The point I want to make is that this practical application does not always work. I note that the RSA responded in the media to what I had said in the Dáil. Has the RSA looked at any new technologies since the requirement was introduced? Has it given consideration to the possibility of having in-car speed restrictors? Has it considered the introduction of in-car blackboxes as used by the insurance industry? These options could negate the need to have a fully licensed driver in a vehicle at all times.

By way of illustration, this issue does not just affect young people. Around the time I spoke in the Dáil on this issue I received an email from a man in his 30s from Dublin who now lives in west Clare. He is a latecomer to driving. He made the point that if he wants to go to a supermarket or into Ennis then, if he is to follow the spirit of the law, he must go to his neighbour's house, knock on the door and ask if the neighbour can sit in the car with him for an hour because he wants to go to town and come home again. The law is good but the practical application is not there. What is the RSA doing to modernise the law or at least its practical application?