Timmy Dooley (Fianna Fail)

I welcome the Minister and support the motion. We have had a series of debates on road safety over the past number of years and it is critical that this issue be kept to the forefront of the public agenda, irrespective of whether we disagree on what the Government has done. Hopefully, such debates will continue to ensure drivers take cognisance of good practice on the roads.

It is important to highlight the Government's achievement on road safety, including the regular publication of position papers and documents, which is welcome. The introduction of the penalty points system was also welcome. It may not be achieving the results the Opposition would like but it has formed the framework within which a resolution to this issue can be found.

We could debate statistics all night. No death on our roads is acceptable. However, when the ratio of road fatalities to car numbers is considered, the number of deaths does not look as bad. A greater number of cars are on the road every year so while the number of road fatalities is increasing, when one considers the ratio of cars to fatalities, the trend is in the right direction, which is welcome.

Road safety revolves around all users exercising due care and attention, not only those driving cars. Most of our debates focus on traditional cars, which is understandable, given that most drivers use such vehicles. However, the Government's strategy continues to focus on the wearing of seat belts, speeding and drug and drink driving. These are recognised as the key factors in road accidents.

There is little debate about the behaviour on the road of the drivers of heavy goods vehicles and their practices. I do not wish to have a go at them, given that many of them work in extreme conditions to tight deadlines, particularly those who need to meet boats in our ports and so on. The haulage sector is competitive and the drivers are under unbelievable pressure. However, the speed limit for articulated trucks should be reduced.

Senator Dardis referred to stretches of the N7 approaching Dublin, which I travel a few times a week. I regularly witness heavy goods vehicles overtaking family cars, which are travelling well in excess of the speed limit, particularly in wet conditions. They leave a trail of spray behind, which makes it virtually impossible for other drivers to use the road. Something needs to be done in this regard. The tachograph system used in articulated trucks should be inspected more closely to ensure drivers do not travel in excess of a specified speed. It is usually used to check the number of hours the driver has operated the vehicle but it also has the capacity to monitor the speed at which the vehicle was travelling although that is not done. If this were checked, I would be surprised if any truck drivers would remain on the road.

Long distance driving is also an issue. There was a time when HGV drivers on long distance routes were much older, with some advancing towards retirement. However, nowadays many people in their early 20s are driving trucks. This may be because they are the only people companies can find to do the work given the strong state of our economy. As soon as they have passed the relevant test, they begin driving long distances but they do not have the requisite experience. While they have succeeded in passing the test, they do not have the experience to operate such vehicles. I seek a review of the testing procedures for HGV drivers. While people may be able to pass the test, they do not have the necessary experience to manage these vehicles. A number of articulated trucks have been involved in accidents in recent weeks. The accident on the M50 slip road last week caused gridlock throughout Dublin city. It is time to review this test. The most critically important element is young male drivers. We have had many debates in this House about young males drinking or committing suicide, and now we are faced with young male drivers and the problems they cause. They are referred to in the vernacular as "boy racers", and on a Sunday or Monday morning we all see the predominance of wheel spins and hand-brake turns at rural crossroads. It is increasing to alarming proportions and must be tackled, either through enforcement or through the introduction of some sort of regulation or measure that limits the size or power of engines. I am no mechanical expert in that regard, but there are procedures whereby engines can be limited, such as is the case with HGVs. We will have to consider that, since we cannot depend on such drivers to show due care for other road users. Their behaviour is unbelievable and must be addressed.

Penalty points have worked, by and large. There is the question of enforcement, and it is important that it be taken into account. Even if one doubled the size of the Garda, it would not be able to position gardaí on every crossroads or stretch where accidents take place. There is a real need for co-operation between the Department of Transport and the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform regarding the policing of towns and villages at night, particularly over the weekend.

The presence of a garda on a village street when the nightclub or pub closes would prevent many young people attempting to drive out of the village. It is out on the rural road while dropping a girlfriend or mate home that many such accidents occur. Young people under the influence of alcohol or drugs are unable to control their high-powered vehicles. If the focus of enforcement were on the point where the journey first began — by and large in urban or semi-urban areas — one would resolve that problem. The presence of police would also resolve some of the other issues of anti-social behaviour that have regularly been discussed. Enforcement is not so much about the garda in the ditch with the "hair-dryer" or with some kind of covert plan. That might help improve our own driver behaviour, but it will not help resolve the problem of the 19 year old who has just got his hands on a high-powered Honda Civic and is determined to show his mates what he can do. We should focus our attention on towns when tackling the issue of safety.

I wish also to address the NRA, with which I have recently exchanged some correspondence. There is a problem regarding driver fatigue. There is now a motorway from Dundalk to Portlaoise. The NRA has told me that, in general, it is recommended that lay-bys be provided approximately every 10 km on improved rural or all-purpose dual carriageways. It went on to say that it was not, however, intended that lay-bys be provided on single-carriageway roads or motorways, since the latter are intended for fast-moving traffic only, and regulations made under the Roads Act 1993 prohibit vehicles from stopping anywhere within the motorway fence lines, except in special circumstances such as emergencies.

That is not acceptable and I hope the Minister for Transport, Deputy Cullen, can force the NRA to re-examine that issue. I understand it has consulted a safety expert. I make the point not to disturb but to suggest that it need not have gone anywhere, since people around the country regularly write to it on this issue. It concerns the provision of a lay-by. Such lay-bys are provided in England, the United States and in many other countries, where they are incorporated into service stations. However, the NRA is now saying that by-laws prohibit it from providing lay-bys. It is of great importance, as I know myself, since I regularly have to pull over for a cup of coffee or even a sleep on a long stretch of road only to find there is no opportunity to do so.