A new survey of driver attitudes has serious lessons for us all, writes Patrick Logue.
Irish drivers are confident of their abilities, over-confident perhaps. If we were as good as we believe we are, thousands of families would not be in grief today, road safety would not need a strategy and road deaths would be a rarity instead of the norm.
So confident are we in our driving ability, a large minority of us see fit to speed, leave seatbelts unfastened, leave children's seatbelts unfastened, overtake on corners and hold out hope that it will "never happen to me". This attitude has left about 15,000 dead and tens of thousands maimed or brain dead over the past four decades.
So far this year, 341 people have died on the State's roads - 27 more than for the same period last year and more than the total number of fatalities for 2003. But the harsh reality of death and injury doesn't seem to impinge on the Irish motorist. According to the survey of motorists' behaviour by FBD Insurance and Advance Pitstop in association with Waterford Institute of Technology, 86.9 per cent of motorists said they believed they were either excellent, very good or good drivers.
Some 42.1 per cent believed they were very good drivers, 23.4 per cent believed they were excellent, while 21.4 per cent said they were good drivers. More than 11 per cent said they were average drivers.
Somebody has to be wrong. Garda and National Roads Authority (NRA) statistics suggest Ireland's drivers are not as competent as they think.
We can expect more than 20 people to die on the Republic's roads between today and New Year's Eve. December has claimed the lives of 21 people for each of December 2002 and December 2003. There is no evidence to suggest December 2004 will be any different. In fact, as the perception spreads that traffic laws are not being enforced by an over-stretched Garda, if could even be more than this figure.
NRA studies estimate that more than 80 per cent of these fatal crashes will be due to drivers, including presumably the excellent, very good and good drivers of Ireland, making mistakes. Driver error also accounts for 86 per cent of accidents, fatal or causing injury.
The Irish driver, busy swaggering to the tune of unwavering self praise, has failed to make the connection between his or her actions and the continuing deaths, even though it can often touch them closely. The survey reveals 56.5 per cent of those questioned knew somebody who had been killed in a crash and almost 65 per cent said a family member or friend was involved in an accident of some sort.
More than 50 per cent of those surveyed said the experience of knowing somebody killed in a crash had made them more safety conscious behind the wheel. It's a harsh lesson to have to learn, but even still, the survey reveals a litany of bad driver behaviour remains prevalent on the State's roads.
Speeding is endemic, with 77.8 per cent of those surveyed admitting to knowingly breaking the limit, even if it sometimes was by a small amount.
While 90.7 per cent say they always wear a seatbelt, drivers pay less attention to other people in the car - 89.8 per cent insist the front seat passenger belts up, while only 73 per cent insist rear seat passengers do so; 85 per cent say they insist children under four have belts on.
Some 38 per cent of motorists admit to occasionally using mobile phones while driving, 10 per cent do it often and 8 per cent do it all the time. When the phone rings, 46 per cent of drivers answer occasionally, 12 per cent do so often, while 11.6 per cent do it all the time.
More than 9 per cent of drivers admit to drinking one unit of alcohol before driving. Nine per cent also admit to drinking two units, 3.6 per cent say they have consumed three units of alcohol, while 4 per cent admitted to drinking four or more units. One unit of alcohol is represented by a glass of wine, a glass of beer, or a measure of spirits.
While 70 per cent of drivers said they never knowingly broke a red light, a significant minority, 26 per cent, said they did so on occasion. More than 12 per cent admitted to nodding off at the wheel of their vehicle, while more than 10 per cent said they either rolled down a window or turned up the radio after feeling tired while driving.
Only 0.6 per cent of Irish motorists, unsurprisingly, said they were poor drivers, but those surveyed were not shy about pointing out other drivers' perceived incompetence.
Almost 30 per cent said drivers between the age of 17 and 24 were incompetent and dangerous on the road. Older drivers also came in for harsh criticism, with almost 15 per cent of those questioned for the survey believing that drivers between the ages of 65 and 74 were incompetent and dangerous, and 40 per cent believing this about 75- to 84-year-olds. Almost 58 per cent believed drivers over the age of 84 were incompetent and dangerous.
Both sexes largely viewed males as better drivers and females as safer. More than 35 per cent believed women were safer drivers and 18.6 per cent believed men were. However, 33 per cent said they believed men were better drivers compared to 20 per cent, who believed women were.
Survey reveals low use of public transport
Amost 80 per cent of motorists never use public transport while almost half drive to work every day, according to the FBD survey.
Only 8.1 per cent of respondents used public transport three or more days each week.
Three out of four respondents (74.9 per cent) said they had two or more cars in their household. Almost one in three (31.5 per cent) respondents have three or more cars in their household.
Some 45 per cent of motorists spend between one and hours hours every day travelling to work. Of the remainder 14.3 per cent spend at least three hours travelling to work each day.
Comparing public transport and car travel, only 14.9 per cent said public transport was less stressful than driving while 43.9 per cent said driving was less stressful. Almost 54 per cent said it was quicker for them to travel by car than to use the bus, train or tram, while 37.9 per cent said it was cheaper.
When motorists were asked whether they got up earlier when travelling by car compared to public transport - 37.5 per cent said they left home later while only 14 per cent left earlier.
The survey shows that more frequent and reliable public transport will encourage motorists out of their cars. 50.2 per cent said they would be either influenced or greatly influenced by this. Cheaper fares (45.8 per cent), improved conditions (45.6 per cent) and increased fuel prices (43.2 per cent) were the next most likely factors to change commuting habits, the survey found.
THE MAIN POINTS OF THE SURVEY:
- 86.7 per cent said their driving was excellent (23.4), very good (42.1) or good (21.4)
- 22.7 per cent admit driving after consuming alcohol
- 77.9 per cent have knowingly broken the speed limit, 36.8 per cent by more than 5 mph
- 26 per cent admit to breaking red lights on occasion
- 56.5 per cent knew somebody who had been killed in a road crash and almost 65 per cent said a family member or friend was involved in an accident of some sort
- 56.9 per cent have experienced road rage either as recipients, protagonists or both. In 17.6 per cent of incidents the motorist verbally abused the recipient and in 9.7 per cent the protagonist got out of the car
- 74.9 per cent said they had two or more cars in their household
- Almost 80 per cent of motorists surveyed never use public transport
- Almost 50 per cent use their car to get to work every day
- More than 12 per cent admit they have nodded off at the wheel of their vehicle
- Males seen as better drivers but females seen as safer behind the wheel
- 90.7 per cent say they always wear seatbelt