Vol. 479 No. 3
5 Miss Quill asked the Minister for the Environment the new steps, if any, his Department proposes to take in the horrific number of fatal road accidents to effect a reduction of the number of fatal accidents; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12993/97]
The rising trend in road accident numbers and fatalities is a matter of grave concern to me and to all the Departments and agencies involved in road safety.
The disimprovement which began in the summer of 1995, when accident numbers shot up in comparison with previous years, has continued throughout 1996 and 1997. This trend must be viewed against the backdrop of a significant increase in kilometres travelled and in the number of registered vehicles on our roads. That offers no consolation to those involved in road traffic accidents and their families and friends. Every accident is one too many.
For that reason I have endeavoured to step up road safety measures on an ongoing basis and have reported on individual initiatives to the House in recent months. The Road Safety Together strategy, introduced last year, is focused on all the critical areas — engineering, enforcement, education and encouragement — and is directed at all the responsible agencies and all road users who must work together to seek new ways to tackle the problem. Specific initiatives I have taken in recent months include the introduction of on-the-spot fines for speeding offences, the publication of a traffic signs manual, the issue of a new guide to road safety engineering and the development of a road safety initiative at county level. I have also provided support for the establishment of a driver instructor register.
The wide range of road safety measures being implemented on a continuous year round basis aims at making our roads safer for all road users. Enforcement is a critical element of any strategy. My colleague, the Minister for Justice, has assured the House the Garda authorities are committed to a rigorous enforcement of the road traffic Acts throughout the year. I welcome the proposal of the Garda Commissioner to set up, at an early date, a national traffic policy bureau for traffic policing on a national basis to ensure a coordinated and policy driven approach by all gardaí to the enforcement of traffic law.
A Cheann Comhairle, permit me to join the Minister and Deputy Ryan in their tributes to you for the intelligent, independent and gracious manner in which you have discharged your duties at all times. You will be missed and fondly remembered. When we are back after the election, I am sure we will often talk of how we enjoyed Question Time under your stewardship and how, at all times, you upheld and enhanced the reputation of this House which is the seat of Irish democracy.
The Deputy is too kind.
You deserve it and a lot more.
I thank and acknowledge the Minister's efforts but 24 people were killed on our roads last week. Will the Minister accept that there would be universal, international outrage if that number of people had been killed as a result of terrorist activity? However, there is scarcely a whimper when they are killed on our roads.
Last year, 456 people were killed on our roads. That is equivalent to the population of an average provincial town. Will the Minister accept that, whatever the extent of the measures he has implemented, they are not achieving the desired result? Will he also accept the need for a new package, an intensification of existing efforts and the establishment of a new body to assess the effectiveness of the package? Such a body could report to the Department and confirm whether the package is having the desired effect or whether other measures are required.
I thank the Deputy for her kind comments complimenting me on my road safety initiatives. However, in her most recent press statement she complains that, in two and a half years, I have not done a single thing about road safety.
One single effective thing.
What date is on the statement?
In the last fortnight.
The Minister has done a lot in a fortnight.
I was judging by the results, not by the efforts.
I have noticed that the Deputy has managed to have the same statement appear in the national press on successive Mondays. That is no mean feat. This is an extremely important and difficult issue. To give the Deputy a blunt answer, I am deeply depressed that the figures for fatalities and accidents are going up. I have the statistics in terms of increased traffic volumes and kilometres travelled. For example, 18,000 million vehicle kilometres were travelled in Ireland in 1978 when 628 people died. In 1995, the most recent year for which figures are available, 31,000 million vehicle kilometres were travelled, a 72 per cent increase, yet the number of deaths decreased by 30 per cent to 437. When one thinks of 437 fatalities in 1995 or 456 last year, this is a horrendous toll. It is a nightmare to see the television pictures or visit the family of a victim one knew. I am open to any suggestion which would help reduce these figures.
Having consulted in detail the Minister for Justice, I am strongly of the view that enforcement must be a major part of our response. I am heartened by the increased enforcement, such as the use of unmarked Garda vehicles on major roads. As a result of the investment in some of these roads, it is possible to travel at very high speeds. There has been a huge increase in the number of on-the-spot fines for speeding. The problem with enforcement is that many accidents occur in the middle of the night or the early hours of the morning and it is difficult to implement a comprehensive enforcement regime on every road, 24 hours a day.
The National Safety Council has a strong role to play in pulling the strands together. I have appointed a new chairman to the council and specifically instructed him to focus on road safety as a priority to see what more can be done to improve the statistics and what other ideas exist internationally which could be applied to Ireland. That will be done. If the Deputy has any further suggestions which would reduce the fatalities, even by one, I would be delighted to take them on board.
This is too serious an issue with which to play party politics and I would not do so. The Minister spoke about the television pictures. However, I talk about the anguish of bereaved families, many of whom I have met. Last week there were a number of fatalities involving motor cyclists. Will the Minister consider the introduction of a national training programme for motor cyclists similar to the compulsory basic training scheme in Britain? This programme has proved effective in reducing motor cycle fatalities.
Question No. 13 relates to this issue.
Let us not anticipate that question as that would be unfair on the questioner.
Will we reach Question No. 13 in the time available?
We will.
Does the Minister think it important that we attempt to monitor the effectiveness of the existing measures on a monthly basis? If these measures are shown to be ineffective will we revisit the situation and see what more can and must be done?
Data such as this does not lend itself to monthly analysis. There can be a dreadful incident and then a month without any incident. There has to be an ongoing evaluation and implementation of good ideas, improving all the elements which contribute to improved road safety, for example, improved road standards, markings, signage, lighting, enforcement, education and exhortation. Taken together, these measures will have the desired impact and I assure the Deputy of my constant efforts to address this issue in a comprehensive manner. That is why I introduced the Road Safety Together strategy, which pulls together all the elements and agencies such as the National Safety Council, the Garda Síochána, local authorities, the insurance industry and everyone with an interest in improving these awful statistics.
Questions Nos. 6 and 7 may be taken in ordinary time and other Members may put questions thereto.
