asked the Minister for Local Government with regard to the increase in road deaths of 56 for the first ten months of this year over the same period last year, if he will make a statement outlining the steps his Department are taking to deal with this problem.
Written Answers. - Road Deaths.
102.
As an immediate measure to increase public awareness of the continued increase in fatal accidents I have arranged with road authorities for special temporary warning signs to be provided on major traffic routes throughout the country. The first signs will be in place next month. They will display different messages for specific periods. In the first period, the message will be related to drinking and driving—which as I have stated on several occasions, is a major contributory factor in road accidents.
The House will recall the recently announced decision to set up a special traffic corps within the Garda Síochána which will not only enforce road traffic law but act as an accident prevention corps. In the meantime Garda activity in the area of road enforcement has been stepped up considerably. Breathalyser detections for example, now average 300 per month compared with a monthly average of 130 in 1971.
On the engineering side road authorities have already been asked to give priority to those sections of roads identified as high accident locations by An Foras Forbartha. Many of these schemes will be very costly and it will take a considerable amount of time before they can be completed. Despite demands on the Exchequer for other urgent capital works and programmes, it is my intention to make the maximum practicable financial resources available for road works, for which an additional £ 2 million was allocated to road authorities this year.
In the propaganda and educational field it is my intention to involve as many organisations as possible, both voluntary and commercial, in the promotion of road safety. Co-operation is already forthcoming from a number of bodies and offers of co-operation have already been received by my Department from several organisations. I have already initiated discussions with various interests with a view to securing their participation in appropriate roles.