Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 16 September 2021
188. Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Minister for Transport if he or his Department have engaged with the Road Safety Authority or the National Roads Authority on measures to combat accidents given the recent tragedies on motorways; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44406/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs agencies of my Department, my officials and myself are in constant contact with both the Road Safety Authority and the National Roads Authority, now known as Transport Infrastructure Ireland.
While the number of those killed on our roads has been high over the past summer months, I would remind the Deputy that the fatalities are broadly level with last year for the year to date.
Motorways remain our safest roads, but because of the speed, which motorists travel at, unfortunately when there is a collision it tends to have more serious consequences. As research shows, regardless of the initial cause of a collision, it is the speed which the vehicles are travelling at which determines the outcome; the higher the speed, the greater the damage.
In relation to motorways and national roads specifically, the safety section of TII carry out assessments of the National Road network under the HD15 programme which identifies accident clusters, and under the HD17 programme (which is carried out under the European Directive) which involves route assessments. Works identified under these programmes are communicated to the Local Authorities and may attract funding once a feasibility report is submitted to the safety section of TII. TII progresses a pipeline of such projects through various stages of development on an on-going basis
Under its HD15 programme, safety works are based on an analysis of accident density across the network and those sections of the network with considerably higher than average accident densities are selected for analysis. Sections of road, which are amenable to engineering solutions, are prioritised for treatment.
Collision data is recorded by An Garda Síochána. This data is used by the RSA and TII for research purposes. Each high collision location is investigated by a site assessment team. The inspection of the site’s collision history, coupled with the site visit, determines if an engineering counter measure will improve the safety performance of the location.
TII is committed to the evaluation of the road safety remedial measure programmes. The remedial schemes are assessed in terms of the reduction in the number of collisions at the site and the first year rate of return.
In addition, TII's HD17 programme is based on road safety inspection reports. These reports indicate which issues, for example signing, lining or safety barriers, need to be addressed on different sections of roads and programmes are drawn up to deal with the priority issues.
Unfortunately the four main causes of fatalities on our roads remain speeding, use of mobile phones, intoxicated driving and non-wearing of seatbelts, all areas where drivers need to take personal responsibility for their driving behaviour.
Every death on our roads is one too many, and myself and my officials are working tirelessly to achieve the EU's target of Vision Zero - no road deaths on European roads by 2050. In this context, it is worth noting that Ireland's roads are the second safest in the EU.
