Liz O’Donnell: Talking about road safety could save lives

While enforcement on our roads plays a crucial role in reducing casualties, education and awareness play a huge role in promoting safe driving

Chief Superintendent Jane Humphreys and Sarah O’Connor, Director of Partnerships and External Affairs with the RSA at the launch of the ‘SAY IT’ campaign, encouraging people to speak up about dangerous driving habits among their friends and family.

A recent rise in the number of deaths and serious injuries on Irish roads is of huge concern. It demands and deserves more resources to reverse the regrettable trend, which has the capacity to undo many of the road safety achievements of the last two decades.

The violent and sudden loss of any life brings deep devastation and a unique grief, particularly when it involves a young person. Those left behind endure the pain of seeing a promising future vanish. Then there is the shock of dealing with a sudden death, the unreality of organising a funeral and the reality of a bleak future. No time to say goodbye, guilt about things unsaid, recrimination about who is to blame, court cases which can last years. This is road trauma.