Dáil debates

Thursday, 28 April 2005

Driver Testing and Standards Authority Bill 2004: Second Stage (Resumed).

 

2:00 pm

Photo of Ciarán CuffeCiarán Cuffe (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party)

I welcome the Bill. It is a small step in the right direction. Perhaps to those who are intimately involved, it is a giant step. Looking at it from outside the structures of the Department of Transport I see it as only a small step towards addressing the issue of safety on roads. A Bill such as this should address the carnage on Irish roads and the appalling death and injuries that occur daily under the control of this ministry. We need a sea change in approach to safety and road design to reduce the high level of fatalities and injuries on our roads. We have one of the highest rates in Europe of child injuries on roads. The Minister and his staff have to address these issues as part of a strategy to look at road safety, driver testing and standards. An air of complacency about road safety is evident in the road safety documentation and strategy. I am not convinced enough effort is being expended in every level in reducing the carnage. Stricter standards of driver testing are required as is testing of the instructors on an annual or biannual basis because nothing but the best is good enough to try to reduce the hundreds of deaths occurring every year on Irish roads.

A stronger emphasis should be placed on research. The so-called cowboy licences given out 20 years ago should be investigated. These licences were issued to people who had repeatedly failed the driving test and were driving on a third provisional licence. I recommend research into whether those drivers are more prone to being involved in road accidents. I am astounded by the absence of any commitment to examining the driving of that cohort since they obtained those licences.

A car is like a loaded shotgun and one small mistake can kill many and impact on the lives of hundreds. The crude statistics are available but more analysis of the causes of accidents should be carried out. The mantra of, "Improve the road conditions and there will be a reduction in deaths and injuries" is true to a point. However, a synergy of effect is evident in every aspect of road safety, which needs to be addressed in more detail.

Section 4 deals with the issue of testing vehicles and the regulation of driving instructors. This should be examined in more detail. Statistics showing the safety of different classes of vehicles and the different types of vehicle should be available.

Significant problems associated with sports utility vehicles are evident in the United States. These are four-wheel drive vehicles with a high wheel base that seem to overturn easily. This vehicle is beginning to dominate the sales market in Ireland. I suggest the Minister's Department carry out research into whether these vehicles are intrinsically more dangerous for drivers, pedestrians and the occupants of other vehicles, which I suspect they are. The larger the vehicle, the higher the wheel base, the more likely that vehicle will cause death and injury on the road. I ask for something other than a deafening silence from the Department.

The Bill provides for greater regulation of driving instructors. Both the instructors and those drivers with full licences should be tested on an ongoing basis. I suggest this could be every two years for instructors and every five or ten years for those with full licences. A much more hands-on approach in the management of these issues is required, given the level of death and injury on the roads.

Section 6 refers to the functions of the authority as promoting improvement and development of driving standards. The section is not sufficiently rigorous as there should be indicators and targets set down. For far too long, platitudes have dominated this area and nothing has been done to reduce the toll. Has there been an improvement in terms of child deaths per passenger per kilometre in different vehicle makes and on different classes of roads? I am not aware of sufficient research being carried out. While I accept the National Roads Authority is carrying out some research in this area, it does not go far enough.

Section 12 refers to the factors to be considered in the appointment of the members of the board. It proposes members should have wide experience and competence in respect of roads, road safety, transport etc. I suggest those parameters should be widened to include traffic management, traffic experience and risk management. The heart of the debate about driver testing and the level of injuries and deaths on Irish roads must include consideration of risk. Professional risk management expertise should be included at the centre of the board's deliberations. I ask the Minister to extend the parameters of the membership of the board.

It would be advisable for some members of the board to have experience of local government. The ongoing debate on road safety is being led by developments at European and global level. Conferences are held every year on the causes of injuries on the roads. Those with experience of European developments should be included in the debate. I suggest this be provided for in section 12.

I make a plea for lower speed limits in residential areas. Most countries in Europe have a speed limit of 30 km/h in such areas. It should be the prerogative of local authorities to set such speed limits. I am aware local authorities may apply to the Department for permission to impose lower speed limits. While 30 km/h seems very slow to a person behind the windscreen of a vehicle, it is a very high speed when viewed from the perspective of a three year old walking along.

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