WE ARE about to enter a ‘real danger time’ on the roads this August, Junior Minister for Transport Hildegarde Naughton says.
Minister Naughton made the warning in Letterkenny today after announcing plans to double fines for common road offences.
The fine for speeding is to jump from €80 to €160 and the fine for using a mobile phone while driving or for not wearing a seatbelt will double to €120. Fines will be doubled for other offences that put the safety of vulnerable road users at risk, it was announced.
The regulations will come into force within weeks.
This morning, a mid-summer appeal took place at Atlantic Technological University (ATU) in Letterkenny to broaden the road safety message to rural counties.
So far this year five people have lost their lives on Donegal roads.
“We are about to enter a real danger time on our roads in the month of August,” Minister of State and Galway West TD Hildegarde Naughton warned.
At a time when holidaymakers use unfamiliar roads, August 2021 was the worst month for road deaths in a decade with an alarming 22 deaths recorded. Minister Naughton said the fine increases are one tangible way to tackle impaired driving and prevent the same carnage from happening again.
Last year was the lowest ever number of fatalities on Irish roads ever, with 136 people losing their lives in 123 fatal collisions. This year, post-Covid, Minister Naughton said the increase in road fatalities to date is “gravely concerning”.
2022 has already seen a 42% increase in fatalities compared to the same period in 2021. Ninety-four people have been killed on the roads so far this year, an increase of 28 deaths. A further 673 people have been seriously injured.
Aine Keating, a Consultant in Emergency Medicine at Letterkenny University Hospital greeted the increased fines and awareness, saying that prevention is better than cure.
Ms Keating told Donegal Daily: “We see road traffic accidents day in, day out. At the worst end, it’s death and we see the devastation that has not only on families and friends but on our department. It is very difficult to work under those circumstances.”
With higher traffic volumes expected this weekend, an operations order has been issued to all Garda divisions in the country to increase targeted enforcement and visibility.
Gardaí have analysed incidents from the past 12 years to identify the three worst times for road collisions and offences. As a result, enforcement will be targetted from 7am on Thursday to 7am on Wednesday next week. There will be an extra focus on three periods from 3pm-6pm this coming Thursday, Friday and Tuesday.
Assistant Commissioner Paula Hilman, Roads Policing and Community Engagement said: “There has been an alarming increase in road traffic incidents this year. We know many people will be eager to take to the roads to enjoy the remainder of the summer period, but we want people to do so responsibly. Sadly 94 families already this year have been visited by members of An Garda Síochana to be told the devastating news of the loss of a loved one.”
Mr Sam Waide, CEO of the Road Safety Authority said: “As we head into main holidaying month of summer, the roads will be busy with people holidaying at home and tourists holidaying here from Northern Ireland, and further afield. The roads will also be very busy with people socialising, travelling to sporting events, festivals, agricultural vehicles bringing in winter and spring harvests, cyclists, walkers, and children who are on summer holidays. My appeal is for all road users to share the road safely, be considerate of other road users and most of all slow down. It’s better to arrive alive than not at all.”
