Committee recommends use of black boxes on State vehicles

AN Oireachtas committee yesterday called for radical measures to reduce road fatalities including the introduction of systems used in aviation.

In a report on road safety, the all-party committee recommended the use of black boxes for State vehicles and the introduction of simulators for driver training.

The Committee on Enterprise made 29 recommendations on improving driving safety in its fourth interim report on insurance market reforms. Its publication was brought forward from September at the insistence of chairman, Fianna Fáil TD Donie Cassidy, in light of the high number of road deaths during July.

Introducing the report, Mr Cassidy accepted that the Government’s Road Safety Strategy 2004-2006 had not achieved its objective. While welcoming the tough new legislation introducing random breath testing and speed cameras, and the phasing-in of the Garda Traffic Corps, he said much more can still be done.

Introducing black boxes to State vehicles, he said, would allow emergency services pinpoint the location of a vehicle within seconds of a crash and would also provide better information on the causes of collisions.

The use of simulators would allow learner drivers to learn how to react to difficult and emergency situations in a safe environment.

The other major recommendations are:

*A top speed limit of 80kph for learner drivers.

*Compulsory classes on road safety in schools.

*Vehicles to undergo safety rating tests.

*Better standards for cars being imported.

*More lay-bys on motorways to allow tired drivers take a break.

*Use of alcohol detectors in cars for those found to be over the limit.

*Boy racers to be put off the road but to be given other facilities.

*A bigger effort by motor manufacturers to promote the safe use of their vehicles.

Mr Cassidy said there should be an underlying assumption that driver errors are inevitable and that roads and motor vehicles should be engineered to take this reality into account.

“In the short term, the target must be to reduce the level of fatalities to that experienced in the Netherlands, Sweden and the United Kingdom where the rate is almost half of ours. Their example shows that it is possible to bring about a meaningful reduction,” he said.

He said increased garda enforcement could not do that alone. He said better education and training, better-engineered roads and cars, as well as a safety mind-set among drivers would also be necessary.