Use of mobile phone while driving may need to be upgraded to a more serious offence, minister warns
Three While Died Holiday, Bank Serious Last There Roads Year, Collisions Were Crashes On Reported People Over August 12 Irish Fatal In The
New legislation could be brought in to tackle the use of mobile phones in vehicles, the Minister for Road Safety has said, as people were urged to avoid distractions while driving this bank holiday weekend.
Minister of State James Lawless also referred to a worrying use of cocaine among drivers on Irish roads as he, the Road Safety Authority (RSA) and the gardaí made their August bank holiday road safety appeal.
“I think we have to acknowledge and challenge back to people to say that the phenomenon of increased drug use, increased cocaine use in society, and the increased driver behaviours in terms of aggression, exasperation and reckless driving, there may be a correlation there,” he said.
“It also goes back to individuals and almost peer pressure to say that it’s not acceptable to get behind the wheel with drink or with drugs in your system. It’s not acceptable to drive aggressively or recklessly up behind another driver or cross crossing the road. These are dangerous behaviours.”
The appeal came on what is usually a very dangerous weekend on Irish roads, and also comes in a year that has seen a surge in road deaths.
Last year, three people died in fatal collisions on Irish roads over the August bank holiday, while there were 12 serious crashes reported.
As of 9am on Wednesday morning, 113 people had died on Irish roads so far this year, an increase of 13 on the same period last year.
Assistant Garda Commissioner Paula Hilman said that An Garda Síochána’s bank holiday operation would begin on Thursday morning and last right through to Wednesday, given the dangers on the roads across the entirety of the weekend.
She said the highest risk times on the roads would be between 3pm and 6pm over the next few days, and that Tuesday is the “highest risk period” as people travel back after the weekend.
“Our message to people is to really concentrate on what they’re doing,” she said. “We’re seeing too many people distratced and not focusing on what they’re doing.”
Mr Lawless said that use of a mobile phone while driving may need to be upgraded to a more serious offence in future, which would require legislation.
“But that’s really sort of future proofing, that’s looking ahead,” he said. “Our focus is on today, tomorrow, the bank holiday weekend.”
He added that he would consider consulting with tech companies for solutions whereby a phone would automatically lock itself when a driver takes the wheel. A “technology review” is currently being undertaken by the Department of Transport on how technology can be a distraction when driving.
RSA chief executive Sam Waide, meanwhile, added that it’s “time to talk for everyone” as he urged people to talk to family and friends and impress upon them the need to “arrive alive” after their journeys.
Citing RSA research which shows 40% of young motorists admitted checking online apps while behind the wheel, he said: “It confirms the concern of people being more distracted in the car.
“Take responsibility, don’t get distracted and please make sure you end up home safely.”
Everything should be on the table to deal with the recent rise in road deaths, Transport Minister Eamon Ryan has said.
“The increase in [road] deaths is going to require us to look at everything and think about how we get back on track,” Mr Ryan said.
“We were actually seeing huge improvements and we were right up at the top of the league in terms of reduced road deaths.
Mr Ryan said the way to deal with the increase is through “education, enforcement and engineering”, particularly highlighting plans to further roll out speed cameras and average speed cameras this year.
“We will also be introducing about 10 fixed point speed camers on the likes of bus lanes or particular road sections,” Mr Ryan said.
“The job will be to turn that, not just those small pilot numbers initially, but to broaden it out.”
The Transport Minister added that he has recently engaged with the head of Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), calling for an examination of “dangerous junctions and on national roads”.
“What can we do to improve safety in particular spots and to fund that, which we have this year. It has to be a whole variety of different responses.”
However, Mr Ryan said that mandatory retesting for drivers has not been examined by the Government, but that he would be interested in seeing if it has worked internationally.