‘Driver error causes 95% of crashes’

DRIVER error is responsible for over 95% of collisions involving death and injury, a road safety conference heard in Dublin yesterday.

Christopher Bullock, chief executive of Britain’s Institute of Advanced Motorists, also debunked the view that road deaths and injuries are the result of accidents.

“Let’s be quite clear, there is nothing accidental about them at all,” he told a conference hosted by Irish Advanced Motorists.

“Deaths and injuries are caused by collisions, and collisions are, in over 95% of cases, caused by driver error. In other words, they are avoidable.”

A scientific study for Mr Bullock’s organisation, conducted at London’s Brunel University, concluded:

* Driver attitudes changed with coaching — those who had received coaching were less likely to blame external factors when driving.

* Coached drivers saw a marked improvement in driving skills — almost 70% improved their basic driving skills.

* Drivers with coaching showed a 30% increase in their knowledge, or situational awareness.

Transport Minister Martin Cullen said one of the biggest challenges to be faced was the idea that road collisions were inevitable.

Nine-out-of-10 road deaths were a result of bad driver behaviour, he said. The Government was advancing “tough, sensible and necessary” measures to improve safety, he said.

* Advanced driving test information: 056 777 1778, www.irishadvancedmotorists.ie