Michael Kennedy (Dublin North, Fianna Fail)

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Leas-Cheann Comhairle as ucht deis a thabhairt dom labhairt ar an Bille tábhachtach seo. Ta mé an-sásta go bhfuil an Bille seo á thabhairt isteach. Ba mhaith liom mo bhuíochas a ghabháil leis an Aire, an Teachta Dempsey, as ucht an reachtaíocht á thabhairt os comhair na Dála. Os rud é gurb í seo seachtain na Gaeilge, ba mhaith liom labhairt ar feadh tamaill in ár teanga dúchais.

Is ball den Chomhchoiste um Iompar mé agus dá bhrí sin, tá an-suim go deo agam san ábhar seo. Tá mé i mo chónaí i gceann de na dáilcheantracha is mó fáis sa tír. Ar nós gach éinne eile, feicim sna nuachtáin agus ar na fógraí teilifíse an méid daoine a fhaigheann bás ar na bóithre gach lá. Tá eolas agam ar an dochar a dhéanann sé dos na teaghlaigh atá fágtha ina dhiaidh.

Tá aidhm an Bille seo an-simplí - chun na básannna ar na bóithre a laghdú agus chun reachtaíocht buan a chur i bhfeidhm do na húdaráis fhorfheidhmithe dlí agus na úsáideoirí bóithre araon.

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this important Bill. It is a relief that it is being introduced and I congratulate the Minister for Transport, Deputy Noel Dempsey, for bringing it before the House. As a member of the Committee on Transport I have a particular interest in the legislation. As I just said, as Gaeilge, I live in North Dublin, which is one of the largest and fastest growing constituencies in the country. As with other areas, I am aware of the number of road accidents that occur daily, some of them fatal and others causing serious injury. Such road accidents cause grief and suffering to the families concerned.

The purpose of the Bill is to lessen the tragic loss of life on our roads and, in so doing, provide concrete legislation for law enforcement authorities and all road users alike. Consolidation and consensus in support of the Government's commitment in the road safety strategy and the programme for Government is a vital cog in the wheel of this legislation. I fully support the Government's efforts in this regard.

Last year, we considered the issues for a reduction in the blood alcohol content, BAC, level for drivers raised in this debate and agreed that the evidence in favour of reducing the BAC levels was conclusive and indisputable. Reducing the BAC levels from the current limit of 80 mg/ml is one of the most necessary components of this legislation. The Bill gives effect to reducing the blood alcohol limit from 80 mg to 50 mg for experienced drivers, and 20 mg for inexperienced and professional drivers. I sincerely welcome this measure.

It is estimated that in Ireland 25% of road accidents, and 33% of fatal road accidents, are attributable to alcohol. I am sure we would all agree that these figures are particularly frightening. Put another way, each of those one-in-three fatal road accidents involves the loss of one or more people because of alcohol usage. Road fatalities and injuries also have significant financial implications and while this has far less consequence than loss of life, nonetheless it is significant.

Goodbody Economic Consultants have estimated that the cost of each road death is €3 million, while serious injuries cost €386,000 each. They also found that if a reduction in the blood alcohol limit to 50 mg resulted in a 2% reduction in road deaths, it would lead to a saving of several lives and €16 million per year. How can these figures possibly be argued against?

Studies have found that reducing BAC limits from 80 mg/ml to 50 mg/ml has resulted in a reduction in road deaths. A case in point is Australia, where an 18% reduction in fatal crashes and a 14% reduction in serious crashes was recorded in 1983, when the limit was lowered from 80 mg/ml to 50 mg/ml. Further evidence of ever-decreasing road deaths in Australia since the lowering of the BAC limit has been recorded in Queensland from 1984 to 2008, which experienced a reduction of 35% in fatal crashes during almost quarter of a century.

What more evidence of the benefits of reducing our BAC limits to 50 mg/ml could we possibly need? The facts speak for themselves. My strongly held belief is that a zero tolerance policy needs to be enforced for drink driving. There will always be some who will take the chance, who will take more alcohol than they should and believe they still have the mental capacity to get behind the steering wheel of a vehicle and drive on our roads. This happens frequently. The policy should be zero tolerance. This would communicate strongly that drinking and driving costs dearly and is a risk that should not be considered.

The proposed legislation contributes significantly towards sending this message to all drivers. If qualified drivers are found to be above the new limit, between 50 mg and 80 mg, they will incur three penalty points for a first offence. A €200 fine and driver disqualification penalties are also possible. We cannot ignore the fact that some people will take a risk. If they do so, they will have to pay the price. The Bill also introduces a limit of 20 mg for specified drivers, namely learners or professional drivers. However, I believe professional drivers such as bus or taxi drivers should not be allowed have any alcohol in their system while driving.

I am well aware that not all road collisions are the result of drinking and driving. I have a background in insurance and have some reasonable knowledge of the causes of accidents. A full ban on drink driving should be the optimum outcome of legislation. Total prevention is better than cure. We are all aware that current mandatory alcohol testing only occurs at Garda checkpoints, or where gardaí have formed the opinion that the driver may be over the alcohol limit. This needs to be addressed.

Section 8 also provides for the mandatory alcohol testing of drivers involved in road traffic collisions. This is necessary, never more than now. If we can verify at the scene of an accident, when possible, whether any or all individuals involved in accidents have alcohol in their system, the test results cannot be disputed later. Carrying out these tests at the scene can also serve to clear innocent drivers involved of any suspicion that they may have been under the influence of an intoxicant. It is only right and fair that all doubt be removed with regard to the innocent who are involved in serious or fatal crashes.

With regard to road safety here, positive and substantial progress and improvements in general road safety have been chronicled in a recent report by the OECD. This new global report found that Ireland is now ranked the tenth safest country out of 27 countries world wide in the study. The report looked at the road safety performance of 27 countries around the world which participate in its international safety data and analysis group in 2008. It also examined the long-term trends in each country. In its country report for Ireland, it reported that substantial reductions in road fatalities had been recorded. Specifically, Ireland was the fifth most improved country out of 27 participating OECD countries in the report. As a result, Ireland is now ranked the tenth safest country out of these 27 countries world wide, with 6.3 fatalities per 100,000 inhabitants in 2008.

The report stated there was a 17% decrease in road fatalities in 2008 compared to 2007. Furthermore, fatalities decreased by 30% between 2005 and 2008. Between 1970 and 2008 the number of road fatalities decreased by 48%. In the same period, the number of vehicles on the roads quadrupled, but since 2000, the risk of being involved in a fatal collision had almost halved. However the report also highlighted the fact that young people, especially 18 to 20 year olds, are still a high risk group in Ireland, with a fatality risk three times higher than that of the rest of the general population. While television campaigns, driver testing and licensing, vehicle standards and promotion of road safety all go a long way towards dealing with this problem, only enforced legislation will continue to appropriately redress the current driving culture.

The OECD global report follows an earlier EU report published in mid 2009 by the European Transport Safety Council which has ranked Ireland the sixth safest country in the European Union. In January of this year, the Road Safety Authority further reported that 2009 was the safest year on Ireland's roads since road deaths were first recorded in 1959. A total of 240 people tragically lost their lives on Irish roads last year. This is 39 fewer fatalities compared to 279 deaths in 2008 and represents an overall welcome reduction of 14%. Furthermore, in 2009 the Government's road safety target of achieving no more than 252 deaths per annum by the end of 2012 was also achieved, three years ahead of schedule. I agree this is considerable improvement, but the loss of even one life on our roads is one too many and no doubt we all agree on that. It is imperative we concentrate on establishing a road safety culture that will prevent future loss of life on our nation's roads.

On the issue of driving under the influence of drugs, this has been a statutory offence in Ireland since the Road Traffic Act 1961. At present, there is no legislation or mechanism in place to allow for roadside testing of drivers for the consumption of drugs. This is a particular challenge for gardaí in apprehending those who are guilty of being under the influence of drugs while driving. According to the Road Safety Authority, the absence of a roadside test for drugs means that many drug-drivers will not be caught; further evidence that current legislation relating to drug-driving must change. Up to now, gardaí have had to rely on forming an opinion that a person is under the influence of a drug before taking them to a Garda station for a blood and urine sample and unlike penalties for drink driving, there are no graded penalties based on the concentration of drugs in that person's system. Furthermore, gardaí have had to rely on observing whether the person's driving has been impaired by the presence of a drug.

I am very pleased that the Bill will provide gardaí with more definite means to form an opinion that a driver is or is not under the influence of an intoxicant - whether drugs, alcohol or both. Unfortunately, as we all know, many young people seem to drink and take drugs at the same time. There is a necessity for a preliminary impairment test, or field impairment test, for such drivers. This test has proven successful in its effectiveness for predicting positive drug tests for drivers, with a 64% recorded success rate. It is another vital element of the Road Traffic Bill. I strongly welcome this move, as it strengthens the arm of the law and enables gardaí identify and then prosecute dangerous and irresponsible drivers on our roads. It will also go some way towards preventing drug drivers from re-offending.

Despite all the benefits contained in the Bill, many people consider that it will have negative repercussions on their businesses and lifestyles. The Vintners' Federation of Ireland has lobbied against a plan to reduce the alcohol limit, saying it would bring about a significant number of job losses in the industry. It would also argue that rural areas do not have an adequate level of public transport infrastructure for people who wish to visit their local pubs. I would argue that significant funding has been provided by the Government to improve public transport in rural areas. Some €90 million will be spent on the rural transport programme over the next four to five years. This is welcome and we should continue to develop that programme. Funding of €11 million was provided by the Department of Transport for the programme in 2009.

Notwithstanding this, I realise there are elderly and disabled people in rural areas who suffer from isolation and who would like but may not be able to avail of public transport to visit their local pub. For that reason, we need to look into alternative ways of providing evening transport for them. This could possibly be done through the lease of school buses by local groups or perhaps local vintners could come up with a plan to provide transport for their customers. In these economically challenging times, adapting to changing trends in Government policy as well as in the marketplace is crucial in every business. Continuing community involvement in this regard is extremely important and should be encouraged in every way.

On a separate but also transport-related issue, I must take the opportunity to comment on the recent decision of Dublin City Council regarding the 30 km/h speed limit in the city centre. That step was unnecessary and the previous limit should be restored. From the representations and comments I am receiving, many people consider it is much more dangerous to be continually looking at the speedometer rather than watching where one is going. I sincerely hope Dublin city councillors will have the good sense to bring about change when they review the system in July.

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