Jennifer Murnane O'Connor (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I too want to speak about fatalities on the roads in the last few weeks and months, which are very concerning. There were 188 road fatalities in 2023, the highest since 2014, when the figure was 192. As of 13 February, there have already been 22 fatalities and 20 collisions on our roads in 2024. One fatality is too many but 22 already in February is worrying. There are families at this moment who are absolutely heartbroken. Their lives have changed forever. We need to work on this. I welcome the change of default speed limits from 50 km/h to 30 km/h for built-up areas, from 100 km/h to 80 km/h for national and secondary roads and from 80 km/h to 60 km/h for local roads. It is important. We must all be mindful that we have a part to play. Introducing much-needed legislative reforms on penalty points, mandatory drug testing and speed limits will provide a robust response to this by targeting some of the most dangerous behaviours. I wish to ask the Minister of State, as did previous speakers, about enforcement. What is the plan? It will be important.

I spoke to the Minister of State several times in the past week. I have huge concerns that when a local authority contacts TII regarding the safety of roads and proposed projects. There is a huge delay in getting approval. Then, a project manager needs to be appointed, which takes ages. Then, it goes back to the local authority and you try to find out if part of a road is a priority. It is my understanding that nothing is deemed a safety hazard in making part of a road a priority. These are all worrying signs. We need to tackle anywhere there is an issue with safety on our roads. I always welcome funding from Government. Recently, in Carlow-Kilkenny, and I am sure across the country, we received much funding for cycle lanes and everything to do with cycling, which is fine and welcome. If people in my area contact me and I want a pothole filled or something done, it is becoming a challenge, even for me. As previous speakers said, we need to look at the everyday impacts, whether that is water on roads or potholes, of which there are some in my area. We need to tackle basic safety issues that can lead to devastating consequences. As I said, the Minister of State has been in Carlow several times meeting different groups. He met residents of dangerous sections of roads in my constituency across County Carlow. I am aware of his commitment and that the Government will do its best. This Bill will require members of An Garda Síochána to test for drugs at the scene of serious roadside collisions on the same basis as existing requirements regarding mandatory alcohol testing. I welcome all of this. My biggest fear, which I saw in my area of Carlow, is the timing of when all of this will be rolled out, when it will be enforced and what will happen. I can only go back to roads in my area deemed safety hazards. How can we prioritise roads that really need to be done and get commitment from TII, which is a law unto itself, working through the local authority? These are issues I ask the Minister of State to address. We need to do this.

We all see that traffic is getting heavier. We are back to pre-Covid movement. We need to prioritise roads that need to be addressed for safety reasons as well as tackling behaviours that contribute to fatalities. This Bill will strengthen the deterrent effect of penalty points. Under this Bill, people who pay fixed charges for two or more penalty point offences that occurred on the same occasion will receive two sets of points, the highest two available. We need to do this. Since January, there have been 22 fatalities on our roads and 20 collisions. It is February. We all have a part to play. I ask the Minister of State that roads which need to be prioritised get the priority. I ask him for that commitment. I also ask when we can get this through. I will vote for it. We need to work on this now. As I said, one life lost is too many on our roads.

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