The carnage on our roads is expected to continue over Christmas. It is a desperate prospect. And our legislators and law enforcers seem incapable of coming to grips with it. Driving in Dublin has become economically wasteful and socially uncomfortable in recent years because of growing traffic gridlock. But that experience pales into insignificance when compared with the nightmare of high speed, dangerous and, sometimes, drunken driving that occurs on our national roads network and threatens all motorists.
The National Roads Authority (NRA) provided the figures to support the speeding charge earlier this week. On the basis of surveys conducted at 100 locations throughout the country, the NRA found that 25 per cent of motorists were guilty of speeding. In summer, more than one-in-four cars break speed limits, but this figure falls back to less than one-in-five at Christmas time, when there is a greater Garda presence on the roads. Truck drivers have a worse record. Although trucks over 12 tons are required by law to travel at no more than 50 mph (85km) on any road system in the State, between 36 per cent and 41 per cent of them were found to be consistently breaking the speed limit.
These figures provide clear evidence that the motoring laws are not working. And a major contributory factor is the still patchy record of the Garda as an effective traffic police force. In other European countries, and especially in the United States, traffic offenders are in constant danger of being detected because major financial and human resources are devoted to the problem. Here, that is not always the case. Before the Dail rose for the summer holidays, this Government made considerable political capital by promising a new package of legislative measures which would include random testing for alcohol; greater enforcement of speed limits and the introduction of penalty points for certain motoring offences that could lead to the loss of driving licences. Measures to speed up driving tests and introduce new controls on provisional licences were also mentioned. Since then, no legislation has been introduced ail and little seems to have happened. There has been on-going co-operation and information exchange between the Garda and the NRA on speeding statistics and the installation of new speed cameras. But as a general response to the growing anarchy on our roads, it is not enough.
We have reached that time of year when the Garda make a special effort to crack down on drunken driving. Their good work will ensure that some parents, wives and husbands enjoy a festive season free from tragedy. But policing is only part of the equation. Discipline, care and good road manners by drivers would do much to reduce the number of road deaths. A fundamental change of attitude is required. Fatalities numbered 472 last year and 30,000 people were injured. That was double the death ratio experienced in Britain. And it puts us at the top of the European league. It is time for change and for an end to legislative foot-dragging.