A new road safety programme for Transition Year students, aimed at reducing fatalities on Ireland's roads, was launched by the Minister for the Environment, Mr Dick, yesterday, writes Niamh O'Donoghue.
Under the scheme, run by the Irish School of Motoring and Mondello Park, students will learn about the dangers of drink-driving and aggressive driving. They will also be shown a video clip of how families cope in the aftermath of a road fatality.
Mr Roche said yesterday that in 2002 some 30 people in the 17-24 age bracket died on our roads, and another 767 were injured. The figures were unacceptable, he said.
It was important that young drivers learn formally, as they only pick up bad habits when they learn from relatives or friends, he added.
Ms Noleen Murphy from Arklow, Co Wicklow, who lost two sons in two traffic accidents, appealed at the launch of the scheme to young drivers to drive carefully, avoid speeding and never drink and drive.
The launch featured a number of demonstrations used on the course. A melon was dropped from a tower to simulate the impact of a driver's head hitting the windscreen at 30 m.p.h.
Instructors also showed the breaking distance of cars on dry and wet roads while travelling at different speeds.