200 to die as State’s road safety plan fails, says IIF

TWO-HUNDRED people will die unnecessarily this year because of the Government’s failure to tackle road safety problems effectively, the Irish Insurance Federation (IIF) has said.

It is the second time in a week that the Government's record on the issue has been hammered.

Last Wednesday, the chairman of the National Safety Council (NSC),

Eddie Shaw, described the coalition's National Road Safety Strategy as "a spectacular failure".

He was followed yesterday by IIF vice-president John O'Neill, who cited:

The penalty points system: despite it being introduced three years ago, only four of the 69 potential offences are applied.

The Government's delay in outsourcing speed-camera detection, making it impossible to reach the Safety Strategy's target of 11 million speed checks a year.

Its failure to introduce random breath-testing.

Its failure to introduce compulsory basic motorcycle training, despite the fact that over 17% of road fatalities this year were people on bikes.

And while Mr O'Neill congratulated Justice Minister Michael McDowell for establishing the Garda Traffic Corps, he said it would "be 2008 before we see a significant ramp-up in their numbers".

Speaking at the launch of the NSC's "Arrive Alive!" winter road safety campaign in Dublin, he called on the Government to fully implement the Safety Strategy.

But in a statement, Transport Minister Martin Cullen said: "Ours is the first ever government to have a dedicated Road Safety Strategy. We have introduced penalty points, established a dedicated Garda Traffic Corps, invested in new roads to improve safety, as well as move new legislation."

According to statistics published by the Financial Regulator, the motor insurance sector made profits of €330 million last year. These profits would rise substantially if there were less accidents as claims costs would fall.

But Mr O'Neill, who is also chief executive of insurance company AXA Ireland, said communities stood to gain most if the State invested more heavily in road safety.

As of yesterday morning, 317 people had died in road accidents this year 11 more than in the corresponding period of 2004.