Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 28 June 2023
34. Deputy Patrick Costello asked the Minister for Transport if he will provide an update on measures the Government, including all relevant Departments, in collaboration with appropriate agencies including An Garda Síochána and the RSA, is taking to eradicate the use of mobile phone use while driving, in line with targets laid out in the Vision Zero strategy. [31558/23]
View answerThe Garda Commissioner is responsible for the management and administration of Garda operations under the Garda Síochána Act 2005 (as amended) and, as Minister for Transport, I have no role in enforcement of any legislation, including road traffic legislation.
I am advised however, that road traffic legislation is enforced as part of the day-to-day duties of members of An Garda Síochána, as well as through a programme of high-visibility road safety and enforcement operations, carried out in partnership with other state agencies, including Government Departments, the Road Safety Authority, Transport Infrastructure Ireland, and the community, in order to make our roads safer for all.
The current framework for road safety is set out in the Government’s fifth Road Safety Strategy 2021-2030 and was launched in December 2021. It follows international best practice, and is based on the Safe System approach, which adopts a holistic view of the total road transport system and the interaction between people, vehicles, and the road environment to create a safe mobility system forgiving of human error. Aligning with the UN / EU Vision Zero strategy to eliminate traffic fatalities and serious injuries by 2050, the Government’s Road Safety Strategy has the ambitious target of reducing road deaths and serious injuries by 50% by 2030, and to achieve Vision Zero (no deaths or serious injuries) on Irish roads by 2050. To assist in this endeavour, the Road Traffic and Roads Bill 2021 signed into law on 23 June, contains a number of provisions which will complement Road Safety Strategy actions, and the goal of achieving Vision Zero.
The first annual review of the current Road Safety Strategy was held on 2 February 2023, resulting in the identification of a series of new priority actions for 2023. Considering the increase in road fatalities in 2022, one of these new priority areas will focus on understanding driver behaviour, and which will examine the various types of driver distraction, including but not limited to mobile phone use. This is on top of the action taken by Government in October last year in relation to doubling the fixed charge notice for mobile phone use while driving.
In addition, as part of its mandate to promote public awareness of road safety, the Road Safety Authority also runs a number of online and broader media campaigns highlighting the dangers and consequences of using a mobile phone while driving.
Finally, for the Deputy’s information, and in the interest of transparency, An Garda Síochána publishes statistics related to road traffic enforcement at www.garda.ie/en/roads-policing/statistics/roads-policing-statistics-for-2023/.
My colleague, the Minister for Justice also publishes, based on information provided by the Garda authorities, statistics related to the number of Garda members assigned to Roads Policing units at www.gov.ie/en/publication/f179d-roads-policing-unit/.
