Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael)
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I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Noel Ahern. There is a need for a national day to remember victims of road traffic accidents. In 2005 the United Nations designated the third Sunday of November each year as a World Day of Remembrance for Victims of Road Traffic Accidents. It is important that we have a national day of remembrance, as it would allow us to focus on road safety and best driving practice. It is important that we recognise the death and injury caused by road traffic accidents. A national remembrance day could be a focal point for the acknowledgment of the loss and pain of road crash victims and their families. It would allow people to come together and pay tribute to their loved ones and to highlight road safety.

We need also to have a national memorial for those involved in road traffic accidents. Each county has a sign indicating the number of people killed on its roads each year. That is a chilling reminder of the need for all of us to be careful on the roads. Parents and siblings of those who have been killed or injured on our roads would welcome a national day of remembrance.

I acknowledge that this year we had prayers at masses and there was a special ceremony of remembrance at Knock. We have a road safety week in October or November but it is imperative that we have a national day of remembrance, which would have a twin effect. I do not intend to delay the Minister of State unduly. I look forward to his reply in the hope that it will be positive.

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Senator for raising the matter on the Adjournment. It affords me the opportunity to clarify for the House the appropriate steps taken in recognition of the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims and the Government's continued commitment to improving road safety here.

Sunday 16 November was World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims, which happens every year on the third Sunday in November. In Ireland, the day was marked by events and services in many parts of the country. The Road Safety Authority, RSA, which comes under the remit of my Department, is the Government's primary agency for co-ordinating road safety measures and was to the forefront on the day of remembrance. It was joined by local road safety officers, emergency services and the Garda to mark the day, which focused on the victims and on measures to reduce the number of victims of road traffic accidents. It is their tragic stories that remind us to be conscious of our behaviour on the roads with the aim of reducing the number of road traffic injuries and fatalities.

The RSA marked the day by distributing more than 300,000 road safety DVDs featuring a series of instructional rules of the road advertisements, including keeping one's distance, cornering, overtaking, making a right-hand turn, motorway driving and using a roundabout. The authority also distributed more than 300,000 reflective armbands targeting vulnerable road users.

One purpose of the day of remembrance is to highlight the devastating effect road traffic accidents have on people's lives, whether through the inconsolable loss of a loved one or the fact of living with the consequences of a serious injury. How this day came about shows us that ordinary people can make a difference and that road safety concerns everyone, not just policy makers. It began in a small way in 1993 with events in the United Kingdom organised by Road Peace, a national charity for road traffic victims and it went from strength to strength. Three years ago in 2005 it became the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims endorsed by the United Nations.

The day is characterised by events and services, often organised by local groups and victims' organisations to remind all of us of the dangers of using roads and to show solidarity with those who are or who know road traffic victims. The day is an opportunity to highlight road safety and the initiatives of the Road Safety Authority demonstrate that, especially in the manner it chose to do so, by trying to make a practical difference through the provision of educational and visibility aids to improve road user behaviour.

The world day of remembrance, along with other similarly broad and international events, features in the Government's road safety strategy for 2007 to 2012. Action 14 of that strategy recognises the remembrance day and the fact that such events have a part to play in promoting road safety awareness. The authority is rightly the lead agency for that action and is tasked accordingly.

Shortly before the world day of remembrance my Department and the Road Safety Authority took part in another action 14 event, the more formal European Road Safety Day, and took the opportunity to launch Irish road safety week on that day. Experts from Ireland, Europe and the USA joined 200 delegates at an international conference on road safety hosted by the Road Safety Authority on 13 October 2008. The conference was addressed by top level experts from major Irish and international organisations working in road safety, including the Garda Síochána, the European Transport Safety Council, ETSC, the Health Service Executive, Volvo and the National Roads Authority. Topics for the conference included alcohol as a factor in road deaths, risk behaviour in young male drivers and advances in in-car technology.

Overall, Ireland has seen a reduction in fatalities with last year having one of the lowest number of fatality rates in recent years. Eleven years ago, in 1997, some 472 people died on our roads. Last year the figure was 339. The reduction is despite large increases in the number of vehicles on the roads, in the general population and in the number of drivers. Further reductions have been seen this year. As of today, there were 269 road deaths this year, down 46 on the same period last year. According to the European Road Safety Performance Index programme, which is run by the European Transport Safety Council, Ireland is now ranked in the top ten best performing EU countries for road safety performance.

According to a recent report by the European Transport Safety Council, Dublin has performed particularly well. It has achieved the best reduction in the number of people killed in the past decade among the 27 European capitals. A number of factors have contributed to Ireland's falling annual number of road fatalities. The condition and quality of the road network has improved in the past decade and new thinking and technologies have contributed to the safety of the roads. The safety features of cars and trucks are improving, which reduces both the risk of collision and the risk of serious injury when collisions occur.

The penalty points system and the introduction of mandatory alcohol testing of drivers for alcohol, coupled with high visibility enforcement by the Garda, have Ied to significant reductions in fatalities. The increase in enforcement measures by the Garda has led to a change in attitude, a visible change in behaviour, an improvement in driving habits and a reduction in the number of people who drive senselessly while intoxicated. There is now a real chance that we can reduce the number of deaths on our roads to under 300 this year. Even this number is too many. At the end of the year, there will be 300 families mourning the loss of a loved one as a result of a road traffic accident and the festive season of nearly ten times that number will be ruined because of a family member becoming injured in a road accident.

The Government has committed itself to road safety and to the road safety strategy for the years 2007 to 2012. The strategy contains 126 different measures that make reference to what must be done, the agencies responsible and the timescale for each commitment. The objective is to reduce the number of fatalities to 60 per 1 million, which amounts to 252. The figure of 300, to which we hope to reduce the number of fatalities this year, will probably be the lowest for 50 or 60 years. It is extraordinary that 1972, in which year 672 were killed, was the worst year. There are five times as many cars and motorists today but there is more awareness of road safety in Ireland and abroad. There is a far greater buy-in to road safety by the general population and there has been a change in culture. One cannot allow oneself to become complacent, however, because even one death will ruin the lives and Christmas of the victim's family.

Some weeks ago we visited Cork University Hospital, where the Christmas road safety campaign for this year was launched. It was very interesting and there was a range of different speakers. I am used to hearing myself and some of the other speakers but I was very impressed by two of the medical people from the hospital who were speaking from a slightly different perspective. While I might talk about the number of fatalities, they were talking about the number of injuries. While fatalities can leave people shocked and saddened, injuries can have life-long consequences. The medical practitioners were probably speaking to the converted and there is no doubt the talk was very interesting. Some who might waive some of the tough measures taken in recent years would listen much more if they heard the individuals at Cork University Hospital.

The World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims is one of many reminders to us all that we must not become complacent and must continue to focus our efforts on further reducing the number of victims of road traffic collisions. The day of remembrance commenced 15 years ago in a small way but has become an international event in recent years. Many of the road safety groups around the country, which are involved and active, were formed by people who had lost family members. A group in Donegal, PARC, is very active in promoting road safety in all its facets. I thank Senator Buttimer for raising the matter.

Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister of State for his reply. I welcome the fact that the Road Safety Authority is the lead agency. Can I take it we will have a national remembrance day next November? The Minister of State's contribution was best when he spoke off script and I thank him in this regard. Dr. Chris Luke of Cork University Hospital is probably the leading accident and emergency consultant in the country and he has raised some very interesting points.

It is important that we keep the issue of road safety to the forefront and recognise the pain and suffering of many affected families, including siblings. As the Minister stated, the people injured in car crashes can tell a better story than anybody else because, in some cases, they have lingering injuries that affect them for life.