Alan Farrell (Dublin Fingal, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I agree with Deputy Murphy on the location of GoSafe vans, Garda cars or whatever it might be. They tend to be in the very last place you would want them, unfortunately. I am not sure they promote road safety for the vast majority of drivers because they probably should be in the tough-to-reach locations. All that said, just before Christmas on the new M9, I passed a Garda car and a couple of hundred metres later I discovered that such a thing exists as a stealth garda, because he was hiding between two stanchions of an overbridge on the M9. I am happy to report I was not exceeding the speed limit, but he put the fear of God into me when I spotted him at the last second. I am not sure what he was doing there, but he had a speed gun in hand which is probably good to report in the context of this discussion.

I am grateful for the opportunity to discuss this important Bill. As has been said during the course of the debate, the Bill focuses on three key areas, namely speed limits, penalty points and drug testing. The Bill proposes to make our roads safer for all those who use the road network and I hope it will save lives. The Bill before us will reduce speed limits at varying levels on national roads, local roads and roads in urban areas. As with many colleagues, I have regular contact with residents concerning speeding in urban areas specifically. I think of particular areas in my own constituency, such as Swords where I meet many young families on a regular basis when out canvassing. I know there is major concern locally about the speed limits on our roads. The previous speaker mentioned that it can vary from time to time. What used to be a rural road may now be at the end of housing estate in one of the many expanding communities in north Dublin and have the sign with the diagonal line suggesting that the national speed limit of 80 km/h applies. Often that is very inappropriate for the location. Any Bill that assists the local authorities and the NTA in remedying that and putting in appropriate speed limits is to be welcomed.

We have seen worrying trends in road fatalities which is the basis of this Bill. I note that between 2021 and 2022 there was a 15% increase in number of road fatalities. In 2023, a total of 188 people lost their lives on our roads. Unfortunately, there has been a year-on-year rise in the number of fatalities. The trend not only arises in the number of fatalities, but also in fatalities per 1 million of population. Many people will recall in the late 1990s and early 2000s that road fatalities were significantly higher than they are today despite dramatically fewer cars on the roads. I suppose we could say there is somewhat of a statistical good news story in the fact that fewer people are dying per vehicle on the road. However, unfortunately, as we all know, any life lost on the road is unnecessary and preventive measures, such as this Bill, should be enacted as quickly as possibly.

I also welcome corrective measures in the Bill that close anomalies associated with the administration of penalty points. I was on the justice committee and the public accounts committee during previous incarnations when penalty points were being discussed. I am pleased to see those matters being resolved. Currently, if two penalty-point offences are committed on the same occasion, only one set of penalty points - the highest or joint highest - is awarded to the driver. This is in contrast to instances where offences are committed on different occasions where the driver receives penalty points for each infraction. The introduction of penalty points has provided a significant deterrent to breaching road traffic laws and therefore it is of the utmost importance that these anomalies are corrected if we are to maintain the full effect of deterrence measures such as penalty points.

Perhaps one of the most significant measures in the Bill is the introduction of the requirement for gardaí to administer roadside drug testing in the circumstances in which they are required to perform Breathalyzer tests for alcohol consumption. This measure is of particular importance as we are currently in the middle of a boom in the use of recreational drugs. The epidemic of casual drug use is far-reaching and present in every village, town and city in our country. While this matter requires a wide range of Government interventions, I will contain my comments to the provisions in this Bill. Inexplicably, just as there are people who will drink a number of pints and get behind the wheel of a car, there are those who will consume drugs and take to the roads. These individuals present a major risk both to their own lives and to the lives of everybody around them. By introducing mandatory drug testing, we can prevent these individuals from proceeding to cause life-changing carnage on our roads.

To highlight the importance of the measure, in 2023 a total of 7,400 people were arrested on suspicion of driving while intoxicated. Some 36% of arrests that were carried out were based on the suspicion that the driver had drugs in their system, which is over 2,600 individuals. By putting drug testing on the same footing as alcohol testing, we will remove the illusion, no matter how deluded, that people can take drugs, drive and not risk the lives of those around them.

I would like to speak to the wider public awareness campaigns which I believe must be renewed and enhanced. Many people will recall television advertising highlighting the dangers of speeding, phone use or alcohol consumption while driving with vivid detail such is the impact on the public psyche. As we all know, the vast majority of young people no longer consume through the traditional media of television and radio. Therefore, I believe that such campaigns must be brought increasingly to newer media such as social media and the wider online space. We have seen the impact of strong public awareness campaigns, particularly in the area of road safety. I welcome the campaigns that have been launched in recent years. They should be built upon and brought to a wider audience.

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