Elderly pedestrian killed crossing dual carriageway

A MAN in his 80s was killed last night in a road accident near Mullingar, bringing to 52 the number of people killed on Irish roads already this year.

The man was knocked down crossing the dual carriageway at The Downs, four miles on the Dublin side of Mullingar.

Traffic chaos ensued at the scene of the accident. The driver of the car was removed to hospital but is not thought to be seriously injured. The dead man was believed to be from the locality.

Meanwhile, gardaí from Listowel, Co Kerry, are investigating a fatal road collision which happened at 7pm on Sunday last at Ballyline, Ballylongford, Co Kerry.

Three cars were in the collision in which 68-year-old Celia O’Mahony, of Coolbaha, Listowel was killed. She died at Kerry General Hospital on Monday evening.

Yesterday, the new head of the National Safety Council (NSC) has described a survey which revealed high levels of non-compliance with speed limits and wearing seat belts as “depressing.”

Noel Brett, the NSC’s acting chief executive, yesterday expressed concern at the “phenomenal increase” in the number of drivers who break the speed limit on non-national roads.

A survey by the National Roads Authority (NRA) showed that almost two-thirds of drivers now exceed the 80km/h limit on such roads compared to just 8% three years ago.

Addressing a meeting of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Mr Brett admitted: “It makes depressing reading.”

In particular, he said there was a significant concern that only a few drivers of lorries and coaches appeared to be adhering to legal speed limits. He also encouraged parents to lead a better example after the NRA survey showed three out of 10 schoolchildren do not wear seat belts.

Mr Brett was also critical of the current system of training and licensing drivers. “People are trained to pass the test - not to drive safely for life,” he said.

The main Tralee/Killarney road was fully re-opened to traffic last night after an articulated truck, which had overturned as it attempted to take a bend, was removed.

Two cranes lifted the truck, owned by Tarrant International Transport, of Cork, which had ended up against a ditch.

The accident occurred on a bend close to the Kilcummin junction, about a mile outside Killarney.