The Government has been urged to introduce a graduated licensing system for young drivers after a study found it significantly reduced the number of young drivers killed on roads in countries where it operates.
Dr John Cuddihy, a specialist registrar in public health medicine with the HSE Southeast region, said this system - whereby novice drivers begin driving with significant restrictions which are removed in stages depending on driving experience and successful test results - had resulted in a 23 per cent reduction in serious crash injuries among 15- to 19-year-olds in New Zealand.
It had also resulted in a 37 per cent reduction in crashes at night among this age group.
Under the scheme introduced in New Zealand in 1987, young drivers are subject to night driving restrictions and not allowed carry peers.
Dr Cuddihy said the system was also in place in certain US states such as North Carolina, Michigan and California. In North Carolina there had been a 47 per cent reduction in night crashes involving young people.
Presenting his findings at the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland in Dublin yesterday, he said an international review published in 2004 indicated graduated driver licensing was effective and the resulting savings in terms of lives and costs were "indisputable".
He said it had been largely enforced by parents where introduced.
The study has been presented to the Department of Transport, which Dr Cuddihy said was considering its findings.