Whistle to be blown on dangerous or abusive motorists under scheme

MOTORISTS who speed, drink-drive or are abusive towards others on the road now face the added threat of court, endorsement and fines on foot of complaints from their fellow road users.

The highly successful Traffic Watch scheme, piloted in the south-east, is to be rolled out nationwide.

The news comes as it emerged that complaints to a pilot Traffic Watch programme, which urges motorists to blow the whistle on dangerous or abusive drivers, have dipped significantly since the penalty points system was introduced.

The complaints phone line, which is to go national from next month, has helped improve driver behaviour right across the south-east. The scheme has helped to cut fatalities and reduced serious injuries over the past year.

The pilot scheme has been such a success that training for gardaí nationally begins next month and the programme could be up and running in all counties later this summer.

The scheme has been piloted in Tipperary, Waterford, Kilkenny, Wexford, and parts of Wicklow and asks motorists to report dangerous and reckless driving or bad behaviour on roads by phoning a dedicated Traffic Watch number.

In its first year, 4,000 calls were logged, almost half of which were complaints about driving. Over that time, serious injuries on roads in the area have been cut by a third and there have been five less fatalities. Of the 570 people cautioned for their behaviour, 10 people have been prosecuted. Prosecutions ranged from one fine of €150 for a person who threw chips out a car window to successful prosecutions for aggressive, reckless and drink driving. Garda Commissioner Pat Byrne is to shortly roll out the scheme nationwide.

Co-ordinator of the scheme, Inspector Mick Melia, believes it has played a big role in cutting down accidents, injuries and fatalities.

“We will be handing out posters to motorists at checkpoints in the region this weekend, to remind them that Traffic Watch is in operation and to boost driver awareness.

“It’s still going very strongly, and we expect that it will be rolled out nationally in the not too distant future. We would strongly urge the public to keep ringing. By doing so, they could be saving a life.”

The volume of calls to Traffic Watch has reduced significantly since penalty points were introduced, Inspector Melia added. “It has quietened down a lot. Anyone travelling the roads knows that people have calmed down a lot.

“We still want people to call us, though, and report dangerous or reckless driving on our roads. It’s been a terrible week for road deaths, particularly Thursday,” Inspector Melia said.