Fine Gael Ireland South MEP and member of the EU Transport Committee Deirdre Clune has seen figures from the Gardai, which show that 70 people have lost their lives on Irish roads so far in 2016, as of May 25th. That’s 12 more than this time last year, when the figure stood at 58, and represents an increase in road deaths of over 20%, when compared with the same period in 2015. Speaking in advance of the busy summer period on our roads, the Ireland South MEP described the figures as deeply disappointing,
“The 70 deaths are made up of 3 cyclists, 7 motorcyclists, 10 car passengers, 35 drivers and 15 pedestrians. The increase in figures is simply unacceptable and deeply disappointing. I welcome the recent news that we are to have 50% more speed cameras on our roads bringing the total to 1,031. The new units are operational since Friday (May 27th), to coincide with National Slow Down Day.
“This weekend an Garda Síochána conducted a national speed enforcement operation called “Slow Down”, supported by the Road Safety Authority and other stakeholders. It covered a 24 hour period from 07.00 hrs on Friday 27th May to 07.00 hrs on Saturday 28th May 2016.
“We have to get the message out there that speed is a number one cause of accidents on our roads. Our rural roads are not designed for excessive speeds and a recent Irish Road Safety Authority report revealed that one in five Irish drivers see breaking the 100km/h limit as acceptable.
“New technologies in cars can help with traffic safety. Speed Assistance technology is a system which automatically slows your car down to the speed limit, and can be overridden if required. In 2014, a Norwegian study found Intelligent Speed Assistance (ISA) technology to be the ‘most effective’ way to save lives on our roads. I have been pushing for technology like this, and auto braking systems, to be made standard features in all new cars produced in the EU.
“15 pedestrians have been killed on our roads so far this year. Pedestrians have a 90% chance of survival when hit by a car travelling at 30kph or less, according to the Road Safety Authority.
“71 Europeans are killed every day on EU roads. France, Ireland, Germany and the UK were among the 12 EU member states that saw an increase in the number of road deaths in 2014. Figures for 2015 show that we reduced road deaths by 27 from 2014, but disappointingly have not had a good start to 2016.