Ulick Burke (Fine Gael)

There are known blackspots throughout the country. Anybody who ever drove from Dublin to Galway will remember the 25 crosses on the side of the road between Ballinasloe and Loughrea where 25 deaths occurred. Tragically, despite numerous deputations to the National Roads Authority, it failed to respond to the wishes of the people that something be done as a matter of urgency. Every excuse in the book was given. I drove that route twice a day for 25 years and on many occasions, I witnessed a number of horrific accidents. As a response to the request of the people, the NRA eventually acquired some land to realign part of the N6 route. As it was so slow in going ahead with the work, many deaths occurred in the interim. That land was supposed to have been used to bypass this particular treacherous blockspot but, thankfully, a new road has been proposed from Ballinasloe to Oranmore which will travel north of the N6. This is another example of the number of road deaths which must occur to get agencies to respond.

Some 15 measures were promised by the Government but only three have been implemented, including the increase in the number of penalty point offences and the breath testing. The chairman of the new authority said he got a commitment from senior Garda authorities that 60 gardaí out of every Garda class would be assigned to road safety. Can the Minister of State confirm that the Government has agreed to this or is it a case of the chairman going on a solo run on this issue? If it is, it is a bit early for him to be going on a solo run. The Minister of State should check the record with RTE but the chairman said he obtained a promise from the Garda Commissioner that 60 gardaí out of every Garda class for the next number of years would be assigned to the traffic corps, which would be very welcome. However, when put in the context of the history of the assignment of Garda personnel to this division, it must be corrected or confirmed that this is Government policy.

Many Senators said one cannot teach an old dog new tricks. It is of paramount importance that schools are used to change the mindset of potential drivers and to teach about road safety in general. Co-operation between the Departments of Transport and Education and Science is important so as to introduce a slot, whether weekly or otherwise, into the school timetable to educate young people about road safety. Hopefully, young people's understanding of road safety will be visible at a later stage.

All this legislation will be judged on whether it is a response to the terrible carnage on the roads and it will mean nothing if it does not result in a reduction in the number of road deaths. Unfortunately for many families, it is a question of whether the deaths of so many will be seen as the catalyst for success in eliminating the carnage on our roads.