Publication of updated 'Rules of the Road'

Some 30,000 drivers a month are currently subject to a random breath test, and the numbers are set to rise over the coming months, Garda Commissioner Noel Conroy said yesterday.

Speaking at the launch of the new Rules of the Road published by the Road Safety Authority yesterday, Mr Conroy said enforcement of anti-drink-driving laws was now firmly established on a regional basis, with the appointment of six new superintendents to the Garda Traffic Corps and an extra 225 gardaí to be deployed this year.

Mr Conroy joined Road Safety Authority chairman Gay Byrne and Minister for Transport Martin Cullen in warning drivers that knowledge of the Rules of the Road was "not a panacea", adding that driving was "a skill developed over a lifetime".

Additional Garda resources would continue to be targeted at suspected drink-drivers between the hours of midnight and 8.00am at weekends - the peak time for loss of life on the State's roads.

He revealed that, in the four days of the recent bank holiday weekend, 479 people were arrested for suspected drink-driving.

While the number was up on last year, Assistant Commissioner Eddie Rock said he believed this may not be because more people were drink-driving, but because the gardaí were catching more of those who did.

While there was a downward trend in the numbers of fatal collisions, this was "no comfort to family and friends left behind".

Byrne also revealed there would be a copy of Rules of the Road sent to "every household in the country" thanks to the sponsorship of the Irish Insurance Federation.

The publication represents the first overhaul of the guide for driving in 12 years.

It contains 25 sections outlining good driving practice and road safety.

However, while the guide was welcomed by the Automobile Association, its spokesman Conor Faughnan said it came at a time of considerable change in driving regulations. These included mandatory taking of lessons, changes to the regulation of driving instructors and regulations regarding the acquisition and use of provisional licences.