How Irish Road Safety has Improved

It’s official – Ireland’s drivers are among the safest in Europe, according to the European Union. The country has just been awarded the 2010 Road Safety PIN Award at the fourth annual European Transport Safety Council conference in Brussels. The award was in recognition of Ireland’s continuing efforts to improve road safety.

Strategic planning

Since 2001 the country has seen its number of deaths due to road traffic accidents drop by 41%, with a 14% reduction in 2009 alone.

The improvements made have been made thanks to the success of the Irish Government’s Road Safety Strategic Plans. One of the biggest factors in reducing the number of deaths on the road has been as a result of the introduction of mandatory alcohol testing in 2006, much tougher penalties for drink driving offences in 2007 and with young drivers having to take a certain amount of driving lessons before they can take the test. There are a number of professionals available who provide these like a Driving School Dublin.

The legislation has been backed up by a hard-hitting campaign of public advertising and industry support, particularly from suppliers of car insurance in Ireland. Ireland is now pushing through new legislation that will lower the legal maximum blood/alcohol concentration levels to 0.2 for learner drivers and 0.5 for all other motorists, some of the lowest levels in Europe.

In addition, Ireland has rolled out the use of new safety cameras, due to come into operation in October 2010. Statistics show that speeding is a key factor in nearly all of the road deaths in Ireland, and was directly responsible for 80 deaths in 2009.

Public support

But the biggest factor has been the willingness of Irish drivers to embrace the new safety legislation and comply with it in an attempt to bring down the number of deaths and serious accidents on Ireland’s roads every year.

The road safety measures also have implications for car insurance in Ireland. Ireland did have a reputation for having some of the most expensive premiums in Europe for many years, but that could be about to change, thanks to the improvements in road safety.

Ireland is still in the middle of its latest Road Safety Strategic Plan, due to run through until 2012. In 2001 there were 411 people killed on the road. Last year that number had almost halved to 241, meaning the national target had been achieved well ahead of the 2012 deadline. Ireland is now 7th out of 27 countries in the European league table for road safety and is hoping to move into the top five at least within the next few years.