Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (Dublin North Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

On behalf of the Minister for Justice and Equality, I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. The Minister regrets that she is unable to be present as she is abroad on official business. The Minister has asked that I emphasise that the initial decision to introduce outsourced safety cameras came after a number of years of detailed analysis and was identified as a key additional measure to reduce deaths and serious collisions on our roads. I need not remind the Deputy that the Road Safety Authority, An Garda Síochána and many others working in the field of road safety, continue to emphasise the role played by speeding in serious collisions. Excessive and inappropriate speed is the number one road safety concern. The advice to the Minister is that in many instances, reducing speed by even a few kilometres per hour can made all the difference to the severity of a collision.

It was against this background that GoSafe was awarded the contract to provide outsourced safety cameras in November 2009, following a tendering process. Operations commenced in November 2010 and were supported by advertising and an awareness-raising campaign highlighting the life-saving objective of the cameras.

The Minister wishes to clarify that GoSafe is paid according to the number of hours of surveys and monitoring. The number of detections has no bearing on the payments made. The service provided by GoSafe operates under the overall direction and oversight of An Garda Síochána, including with respect to scheduling of speed monitoring, training and quality assurance. Vans operate in defined speed enforcement zones, the location of which is in the public domain, including on the Garda website. These zones were identified following an objective and evidence-based analysis of collision data and speed surveys.

Compliance has increased across the zones since the network was introduced. For example, between January 2011 and October 2013, compliance in 50 km/h limit zones increased from 62% to 98%, while compliance in 80 km/h zones increased to 96%. The Garda authorities are reviewing the location of the zones on a continuous basis to ensure the cameras are located where they can have the most impact on safety. All of the analysis carried out points to the conclusion that the safety cameras have saved lives and therefore bring very significant human and economic benefits. Moreover, research carried out on behalf of the RSA earlier this year found that 81% of adults surveyed supported the use of safety cameras and 71% surveyed believe them to be effective in influencing motorists to drive more safely. It is also important to bear in mind that the safety cameras free up Garda resources for other road safety enforcement, including more mobile operations, as well as carrying out alcohol checkpoints.

The Minister is aware of the recent court cases in which GoSafe speeding detections have been dismissed. The Deputy will appreciate that it would not be appropriate for the Minister to comment on the outcome of specific cases before the courts. She has, however, discussed the matter with the Garda authorities and understands that they are carefully studying the recent rulings and taking legal advice, including with respect to the possibility of seeking clarification from the higher courts. This is being addressed by the Garda authorities as a matter of urgency and developments will be reported to the Minister.

In so far as the question of reviewing the law is concerned, the legislation governing the operation by An Garda Síochána of speed detection cameras and the use of outsource safety cameras, is contained in section 81 of the Road Traffic Act 2010, which comes under the remit of the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport. The advice from An Garda Síochána, however, is that the recent court cases do not identify issues which would warrant amendment of the legislation. I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue and I will certainly communicate the points he has made to the Minister.

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