Ways to reduce road deaths

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Firefly

Registered User
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The National Roads Authority at the moment are asking the public (even though they pay independent experts so much money) to come up with ways to reduce road deaths. In the interest of transparency how about we list ways to achieve this goal here...My tuppence worth:

Introduce and publish minimum fines/sentences info to the public. Eg I don't think many people know what fine/punishment they'll get if they're over the limit. If they knew in advance it was eg 12 months no liscence and 500 quid they'd think twice.

Firefly.
 
Firefly.[/QUOTE]
Firefly said:
If they knew in advance it was eg 12 months no licence and 500 quid they'd think twice.
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Really? Is there anyone out there who does not know this?

Firefly said:
how about we list ways to achieve this goal here...
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Here are my ideas-

1. Make it compulsory for all vehicles to have dipped headlights switched on, day and night.

2. Raise the minimum driving age from 17 to 20.

3. Ban all tractrors, dumptrucks and other slow moving vehicles from 80 km/h & 100 km/h speed limit zones.

4. Make it illegal for intoxicated pedestrians to walk on public roads outside built-up areas.

5. Make it illegal for pedestrians to walk on public roads after lighting up time unless they are wearing appropriate reflective clothing (ie high visibility jacket at a minimum).

6. Ban all motorbikes from public roads.

7. Reintroduce into public policy the distinction between "drink driving" (ie driving after having even one drink) and "drunk driving" (ie driving while in no fit state to control a vehicle). At the moment young people refuse (quite sensibly) to buy the notion that one or two drinks will automatically turn them into killer drivers. Same as they refuse (quite sensibly) to buy the notion that smoking a spliff of taking an e pill will automatically turn them into drug addicts. Hence it is no surprise that they fail to take seriously either road safety or anti-drugs messages.

Btw, none of these ideas would cost anything to implement.
 
Publish the reasons of fatal accidents in the press so people know the cause and may alter their habits accordingly
 
Enforce the rule where provisional drivers are supposed to be accompanied by a qualified driver

Have provisional drivers loose thier licence after 6 penalty points or give them 4 points for infringements (same thing I know)

If you loose your licence your are forced to sit a re-test and have 'R' plates on your car like in the North
 
ubiquitous said:
1. Make it compulsory for all vehicles to have dipped headlights switched on, day and night.
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Agree.

AFAIK this was on the cards recently but somebody(Green?) raised the argument that it would lead to the consumption of more fuel which in turn would be harmful to the enviroment. I think it was shelved after that!?
 
Capaill said:
Publish the reasons of fatal accidents in the press so people know the cause
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The double standard here really annoys me.

After a road fatality, the press tend not to dwell on the probable cause out of respect for the grief of the family.

After a murder/manslaughter, they don't hold back and graphic details about the location and condition of the deceased are published without showing any respect for the family of the victim.

This was brought home for me after the death of a young woman in Cobh recently. Her body was found after a search and the details were published adding, IMHO, to the anguish of her family.

Around the same time there were the usual mentions of road fatalities (single occupant, male, loss of control, between midnight and 6AM) and no mention of probable cause.

In certain cases, it is wrong to use the terms 'victim' and 'accident'.
 
Drivers act like grown ups and take repsonsibility for their lives and others by obeying the existing laws of the road for the very good reason that they might just save a life, never mind the threat of penalty points etc.
 
ubiquitous said:
2. Raise the minimum driving age from 17 to 20.
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Wouldnt be a good idea. Move it to 18 maybe as lots of people start working at 18 and should be allowed to drive. Moving the age to 20 wouldnt have a huge affect, plenty of bad drivers around who are 20+. Its not just an age thing...

ubiquitous said:
3. Ban all tractrors, dumptrucks and other slow moving vehicles from 80 km/h & 100 km/h speed limit zones.
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And how are the farming community supposed to get around when working?

ubiquitous said:
4. Make it illegal for intoxicated pedestrians to walk on public roads outside built-up areas.
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I thought it was already illegal to be drunk in any public place?

ubiquitous said:
5. Make it illegal for pedestrians to walk on public roads after lighting up time unless they are wearing appropriate reflective clothing (ie high visibility jacket at a minimum).
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Good idea this one.

ubiquitous said:
6. Ban all motorbikes from public roads.
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Bit extreme
 
SteelBlue05 said:
Moving the age to 20 wouldnt have a huge affect, plenty of bad drivers around who are 20+. Its not just an age thing...
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Okay, from tonight onwards, count the number of road death fatalities that happen involving a driver under 20 years old. Stop counting when you reach 10. See how long it takes.


SteelBlue05 said:
And how are the farming community supposed to get around when working?
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By either using non-national roads or (like builders, crane operators and others) using trucks to transport their machinery. The presence on the roads of large and unwieldy machines capable of travelling at max speeds of 20-40 kph on roads where most other traffic is going at least at 70-80 kph, and up to 100 kph, is a serious issue - as explicitly highlighted by at least recent one road safety TV advert.

SteelBlue05 said:
I thought it was already illegal to be drunk in any public place?
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Make specific provision, including enforcement, for drunk pedestrians.
SteelBlue05 said:
(Ban all motorbikes from public roads)
Bit extreme
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Tell that to the widow and children of the 42 year old biker killed near me earlier this year. Or the 30 year old who lost an arm in another bike crash this year. Or the 20 year old who was killed falling off a bike last year. All three lived within a few miles of each other.
 
ubiquitous said:
Okay, from tonight onwards, count the number of road death fatalities that happen involving a driver under 20 years old. Stop counting when you reach 10. See how long it takes.
.
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You are missing the bigger picture. Young people need to take Driving Ed. classes in school etc. Just pushing out the minimum legal age for driving isnt going to make them better drivers at 20 than they would be at 18 anyways.
Its attitudes and driving skills that needs to be addressed, not the minimum age for drving.
[/quote]

ubiquitous said:
By either using non-national roads or (like builders, crane operators and others) using trucks to transport their machinery.
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You said ban them from 80km roads? Thats every road in the country side.
So the farmers are going to put their tractors and ploughs up on the back of a truck to go down the road to plough a field? And at what speed would the truck be able to drive at? 30km per hour at the most. Most tractors go that speed anyways...


Roads deaths and accidents are emotionally difficult, but its irrelevant to this discussion. If driven carefully a motorbike is a reasonably safe form of transport. The point is not enough of them are driven that way...and why is that?
 
Another suggestion: widen and straighten the main roads between our major cities, particularly at dangerous bends and junctions.

Also - introduce more passing lanes so that cars can pass tractors, dumptrucks etc. Having been stuck in a que of about 20 cars on a main road for 25 miles behind a dumptruck going at 50kmph I know how frustrating this can be.

I have noticed lately that some raods are being widened to make room for an extra lane for those making right turns. This is a welcome development and should be rolled out as much as possible.
 
shnaek said:
Also - introduce more passing lanes so that cars can pass tractors, dumptrucks etc. Having been stuck in a que of about 20 cars on a main road for 25 miles behind a dumptruck going at 50kmph I know how frustrating this can be.
.
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Yeah the dublin to cork road has sections like this, very handy.
 
Driver education in schools and a proper driving test?
Properly trained and certified driving instructors?
 
Most European countries will not let anyone drive on public roads without a full driving license. They need to have proper lessons from a qualified instructor, and pass a test.

Sounds simple, doesn't it? The situation with provisional licenses in Ireland is bizarre. It implies that just about anyone with a driving license is automatically an instructor and the number of people driving without having passed a test is scary.

Yes, I have heard all the reasons of why it is so difficult to implement, but it is a matter of the government deciding to do so - it is not rocket science.

Roads need improving, gardai need more of a presence etc, but there are an awful lot of people out there who have absolutely no idea how to drive and have never been taught safe driving, merrily driving around on L-plates with the government's blessing.
 

Yes and this approach was probably ok back in the day when there was only 1 car to a household rather than to each person, and when cars were a lot less powerful. The Government have a lot to answer for on this issue.
 
1. Abolish all paid Experts whose job it is to come up with ideas. use a portion of the money saved to pay for a broadband connection and start listening to exactly the same or better ideas, for free from the public.

2. Stop treating the issue of provisional drivers and the driving test as if it were some intractable problem like peace in the Middle East. It's ONLY about money. Nothing else. The fact that it hasn't been solved is a measure of how little will there is to do something, rather than how hard it is to do it.


The rules below that crack down on young drivers, try to take account of the fact that for a number of young people their car is their only means of getting to and from work, and it is not their fault that it takes so long to get a full licence.

3. Until the driving test issue has been resolved and people with a provisional licence can do their test within a few weeks, introduce a new rule that NO provisional driver can drive a car without a licenced driver unless they are coming from or going to work.

Once a test can be sat within a week or two enforce strictly the rule that provisional drivers can't drive without a licenced driver at any time.

4. Introduce two levels of learner Plates. L is as it is currently a driver on a provisional licence. Another Plate, Let's say 'I' for inexperienced must be displayed for 1 year after passing your test.

5. It shall be illegal for an 'I' driver to drive between 11pm and 6am, unless they are driving to or from work.

6. In order to reduce the "Showing Off" cause of accidents, and minimize injuries when there is an accident, 'L' and 'I' drivers should be banned from carrying passengers between the hours of 11pm and 6am unless at least one of the passengers is an experienced driver with a full licence.

7. Where an experienced licenced driver is in a car with an 'L' or 'I' driver, any punishment for Speeding or Dangerous Driving e.g. Fines, Penalty Points, should be applied to BOTH the driver, and their experienced passenger.

8. Having being caught speeding, dangerous driving etc, it should be possible to have the points expunged from your licence by sitting a drivers education class.

9. Penalty points for speeding on a motorbike should be twice that for speeding in a car, due to the greater risk of serious injury or death.

10. Gardai should always obey the speed limits and should pull over anyone who overtakes them.

11. Holding a drivers licence should be considered consent to be breathalized. Refusing to give a blood, breath or uring sample when requested should result in an automatic 1 year driving ban.

12. The punishment for being over the legal limit for alcohol or other drugs while driving should be an automatic 1 year driving ban.

-Rd
 
Originally Posted by SteelBlue05
(Ban all motorbikes from public roads)
Bit extreme

One in every six road deaths is a biker - year after year
 
ubiquitous said:
Firefly.
Click to expand...


Really? Is there anyone out there who does not know this?



Here are my ideas-

1. Make it compulsory for all vehicles to have dipped headlights switched on, day and night.

2. Raise the minimum driving age from 17 to 20.

3. Ban all tractrors, dumptrucks and other slow moving vehicles from 80 km/h & 100 km/h speed limit zones.

4. Make it illegal for intoxicated pedestrians to walk on public roads outside built-up areas.

5. Make it illegal for pedestrians to walk on public roads after lighting up time unless they are wearing appropriate reflective clothing (ie high visibility jacket at a minimum).

6. Ban all motorbikes from public roads.

7. Reintroduce into public policy the distinction between "drink driving" (ie driving after having even one drink) and "drunk driving" (ie driving while in no fit state to control a vehicle). At the moment young people refuse (quite sensibly) to buy the notion that one or two drinks will automatically turn them into killer drivers. Same as they refuse (quite sensibly) to buy the notion that smoking a spliff of taking an e pill will automatically turn them into drug addicts. Hence it is no surprise that they fail to take seriously either road safety or anti-drugs messages.

Btw, none of these ideas would cost anything to implement.[/quote]

May cost nothing to implement but they would cost a fortune to police and policing seems to be the olny way to ensure safe roads - think back to when everyone thought they would get hammered on the penalty points until they discoveredthe gardai don't have hte resources to police them.

BTW - I agree with most of your proposals, tho' how would farmers manage with no tractors allowed on the roads?

I'd add another 2 -
1. A driver would be obliged to pull in to allow any build up (6 other vehicles) of traffic behind them to pass safely - this might discourage the rat race at the end of a series of bends.
2. No overtaking allowed unless you can safely pass the front car i.e. no pulling in between a row of vehicles.
 
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