Chilling Valentine road message

SPECIAL St Valentine’s Day cards are on their way to young men in Tralee today.

From the outside, they resemble a traditional card. But the message inside depicts the grim reality of road carnage.

On a day when lovers celebrate, others experience heartbreak from road deaths.

The Institute of Technology in Tralee and Kerry County Council joined forces to send out the chilling road safety message.

On opening the card, the recipients will see a picture of emergency service personnel cutting a young female passenger from a crashed car, with the slogan: “If you don’t like this many blokes around your girl…”

Council road safety education officer Maria O’Regan yesterday pointed out that young men were over-represented in road fatalities.

“Statistics show that young men, aged 17 to 24, are the highest-risk road users in this country. The Valentine’s Day cards are graphic and display a hard-hitting message,” she said.

Institute Student’s Union spokesman J T Deenihan said it was fitting male students should receive the cards. “Many of them fall into the category of the young male driver who is at risk of being involved in a road traffic accident,” he said.

Also, on Tuesday next, hundreds of young drivers in Kerry are expected to attend road safety roadshow being organised in conjunction with the AXA insurance company at the Brandon Hotel, Tralee.

Young people will hear first hand accounts of the horror of road accidents from members of the emergency services and families affected by accidents.

Speakers will include gardaí, fire brigade crew members, an A&E consultant from Kerry General Hospital and a relative of a road crash victim.

The aim is to persuade young and learner drivers to take a responsible attitude towards safe behaviour on the road.