Sean Murray: No 'silver bullet' in solving bad driver behaviour
The speakers in the Printworks in Dublin Castle on Wednesday were keen to emphasise that while the mobile phone is one of the key causes of distracted driving, it’s not the only one. File photo
The term “silver bullet” was used on numerous occasions in the Printworks in Dublin Castle on Wednesday. And how there wasn't one.
The topic was how to get people to put their mobile phone down and focus on driving on our roads. The speakers were keen to emphasise that while the mobile phone is one of the key causes of distracted driving, it’s not the only one.
Nevertheless, getting people to properly switch off has become an important battle in the fight to reduce the number of deaths and serious injuries on our roads, which we know has surged to worrying levels in recent years.
Last month, this reporter accompanied gardaí on a test run of Operation Iompair, a new initiative where gardaí drive around in an unmarked HGV cab which gives them the perfect vantage point to catch drivers on their phones.
During the ride-along, gardaí recalled seeing all sorts of driver behaviour, such as some shaving, doing their make-up, or having their dog on their lap while driving. Sure enough, even during a brief time on the roads in the HGV, one motorist was caught by gardaí clear as day with the phone in his hand.
Sgt Robert Griffin said a deterioration in driver behaviour is something he has certainly noticed in recent years. “It’s like we forgot how to drive,” he said.
This was echoed by his colleague Chief Superintendent Jane Humphries at the road safety conference this week, who said: “Many of us aren’t present when we’re driving our vehicles, that’s the scary thing.”
Dr Kiran Sarma, from the University of Galway, said there’s a sense of impunity among younger people who don’t believe they’ll get caught.
Alongside that, there’s just a plain compulsion for many people to be on the phone all the time. That could be through FOMO (fear of missing out) as a driver to make us constantly check notifications and messages.
The research outlined suggested that people need an external motivator to ditch the phone, such as a more tangible threat of getting caught and facing a heavy penalty.
Some tangible examples of what that enforcement would look like can be found in other jurisdictions. In parts of Australia, new permanent cameras have been erected in parts of the state of Victoria that capture images of motorists on their phone.
A similar initiative has been rolled out across the Netherlands, where police officers bring around a portable camera that can be erected on motorway overpasses.
Last year alone, such cameras led to 34,000 fines being issued. With the fines a hefty €429 per offence, it is hoped that the relatively higher chance of getting caught is an adequate deterrent.
While not committing to any kind of similar initiative here, Minister for Road Safety James Lawless did say the kinds of ideas pitched at the conference could “guide us towards solutions” to bring forward.
But again, pitched against the need for Government legislation and enforcement to tackle the problem was Mr Lawless’s contention that personal responsibility plays a key role in all of this when someone gets behind the wheel.
But RSA chief executive Sam Waide was clear when he said: “We need to shift the burden to lawbreakers.”
Finding the right ways to do that will be essential going forward.
Looming in the background at its own annual conference, however, was the yet-to-be-confirmed future of the State body tasked with promoting road safety in Ireland.
A vocal sceptic of its current model has been Fine Gael TD Ciaran Cannon. He told an Oireachtas committee in June that its road safety remit was totally at odds with its remit to administer NCTs and driving tests.
He said: “Is it not the case that the more drivers and cars on our roads, the more income accrues to the very authority responsible for maintaining safety on our roads? Is that not a crucial conflict of interest?”
The Government has signalled a change is ahead. Speaking to the in August, Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan said that a separate function for the RSA that could simply focus on road safety was being mooted as well as change in how it is funded.
To pre-empt that eventual Government decision, €18m in standalone funding was given to the RSA in Budget 2025 for its road safety remit.
“We’ve had a look at that in Government and said for something so important, something so fundamental, so critical, actually it shouldn’t be dependent on commercial revenues,” Mr Lawless said on Wednesday.
But would this separation be a “silver bullet” for the RSA to fulfil this remit going forward?
Liz O’Donnell, the former Progressive Democrats TD, opened the conference on what is her final month as chair of the Road Safety Authority after 10 years at the helm and warned that the kind of change now mooted could have the opposite effect to what is hoped for.
“We need a road safety organisation that's independent and authoritative and has the courage to advocate for rural safety measures, even in the face of public or political pressure,” she said.
“It was important that the leading agency for road safety could speak out without fear or favour, and we have done that, and very often in the face of opposition from politicians and vested interests who favoured the status quo.
“I fear that if in the new reform proposals we lose [our] independence, that courage to call for the right thing, that campaigning zeal, we will not reverse the current trends and get back on track.”
It may not sit atop the priority list heading into the general election, but how the next Government handles road safety will be a crucial one for it to get right.
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