Economic growth blamed for spike in road deaths

Economic growth has been cited as a factor behind the sharp increase in deaths on Irish roads.

To date, 159 people have been killed on Irish roads this year, an increase of 32 people, or 25 per cent, on the same period last year.

Nine people have been killed on Irish roads in the last week.

Responding to the figures, Road Safety Authority (RSA) chief executive Moyagh Murdock said there is more traffic on the roads as a result of increased economic activity.

She cited the recent congestion on the M50 in Dublin as evidence of increased road use, "and that is replicated further out from the cities".

“People are back in employment. A lot more young drivers can afford a car now and that is what we are seeing from our research.

“Young people are back in their cars. They are not taking personal responsibility.”

Ms Murdock said she is looking at bringing forward a road safety summit scheduled for next month in order to deal with the increased number of road deaths.

However, she said the causes of the deaths are the same as ever, with drink-driving and speeding being the principal factors.

Speaking at the launch of the Garda's road safety campaign for the October bank holiday weekend, Minister for Transport Shane Ross described the situation as "really grim" and "absolutely tragic for some many people".

He said: “It is time to ring the alarm bells. We can’t tolerate a situation like this going on any longer.”

He said there was anecdotal evidence to suggest that drink-driving, which was a factor in almost 40 per cent of road fatalities in 2012, is even worse now.

He said he had requested the most up-to-date figures on drink-driving in order to make a judgment on whether changes are needed to drink-driving laws.

Arrests

Chief Supt Aidan Reid said that over the summer months gardaí noticed an increase in the number of people being arrested for drink-driving, averaging 170 a week.

He identified those aged between 20 and 40 as the worst culprits.

He said that, at the present rate, 34 more people will lose their lives on the roads between now and the end of the year.

“All of those families are going to be affected by the high-risk behaviour of persons on our road who are not heeding the message about personal responsibility,” he said.

Every week, some 4,000 people are caught speeding, 145 are caught drink-driving and 570 are caught on their mobile phones while driving.

“People are not heeding our message,” he said.

The RSA and An Garda Síochána have also teamed together to promote the wearing of high-visibility clothing when walking, cycling or motorcycling.

They are also encouraging road users to have working lights on their bicycle, motorcycle or car.