John O'Mahony (Mayo, Fine Gael)

I strongly support the motion and compliment Deputy O'Dowd on having tabled it. A few years ago, this measure was proposed as a Fine Gael policy by Deputy McEntee. It is not often that Mayo people compliment Meath people, but I am glad to do so on this occasion. I welcome the Government's acceptance, even at this late stage, of the need for compulsory breath testing for drivers involved in traffic accidents. Most other European countries, along with our neighbours in Northern Ireland, already have such measures in place. It should never have been argued that it was difficult to implement these tests because they might prevent medical attention from being administered to injured parties. Compulsory breath testing should not interfere in any way with medical assistance and this can be easily accommodated in new legislation.

There is no doubt that such legislation will help to make our roads safer but we still have a long way to go to catch up with the improvements made in countries such as Portugal, where there has been a 42% reduction in road accidents, and France which has recorded a drop of 42.3%. It is worrying that our August-September figures have shown a 35% increase on the same period last year. Much more needs to be done if we are to avoid paying lip-service to road safety.

As well as drink driving, speeding remains one of the major causes of death on our roads and in this context speed limits should be seriously re-examined. On dual-carriageways the limit can be as low as 60 km/h or 80 km/h, while a 100 km/h limit may apply on narrow roads. Common sense does not operate in this regard. The enforcement of speed limits must be designed to prevent accidents rather than just collect fines. There are few speed checks on narrow, winding secondary roads that can be death traps.

Education plays a major part in reducing the carnage on our roads but that education should be resourced to a far better degree. For instance, there is a pilot road safety module in transition year. Teachers can teach such matters in theory but modules need to be resourced so that expert instructors can teach driving while engendering the right attitude among young drivers. This needs to be done quickly. The transition year module should be rolled out to every secondary school in the country.

I congratulate those county councils which have appointed dedicated road safety officers. In Mayo we are very aware of the dangers on our roads thanks to the work of an innovative road safety officer who has brought safety to the top of the agenda. Every morning on local radio one can hear what he has done, including the day-lighted campaign whereby dipped headlights are left on during daylight hours. That can reduce collisions by up to 20%. Crashed cars are put on display in garage forecourts to remind drivers of the dangers involved. The driving safety roadshows, to which Deputy McEntee referred, started in Mayo. Earlier this year, the leaving certificate results contained a road safety message for students.

Road design and signage are also important when it comes to promoting safety. I have seen numerous side roads and secondary roads that have been resurfaced but while the roads may be improved, the hard shoulders are death traps. Road signage must be clearly visible and motorists must heed such signs.

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