Road deaths could be cut by 50 per cent through the rigorous implementation of road safety measures, according to the Institute of Engineers. This could be done by improving driver behaviour, enforcing vehicle safety and improving the condition of the roads, according to the IEI's director-general, Mr Paddy Purcell.
In a policy document sent to the Ministers for Transport, Justice, Environment and Local Government, entitled Stop Road Carnage Now, the IEI calls for enhanced Garda powers to conduct random breath-testing, enforcing the law to ensure that speed controls in heavy goods vehicles are switched on at all times, banning of bull bars on all vehicles and a limit of three provisional licences for any one person.
Mr Purcell said the 21,000-strong institute wanted the Government to set a target of cutting deaths on Irish roads by 50 per cent over the next five years. The current rate of deaths, at more than one a day, was a national scandal.
He welcomed the partial introduction of the penalty points system, calling for its full implementation as soon as possible.
The IEI also called for the Christmas drink-driving clampdown to be replicated each weekend from July next year, since weekends were the time when the greatest number of road accidents occurred.
The document reiterated that the single greatest cohort of casualties is young men between 18 and 24, with a quarter of all deaths last year falling into this age group; that 30 per cent of all fatalities occur between 9 p.m. and 3 a.m. despite the fact that traffic is very light at this time; and that 68 per cent of cars exceeded the 30 m.p.h. speed limit on urban roads in 1999.
Calling for more breath-testing of motorists, Mr Purcell pointed out that of the 12,834 arrested on suspicion of drink-driving last year, 93 per cent were above the permitted alcohol limit. He pointed out also that Finland, with a similar population to the island of Ireland, carried out 1.4 million breath tests annually.
Referring to provisional licences, the IEI said that second and third provisional licences should be more expensive than first licences. It called for all 325,000 provisional licence-holders to be tested by 2004, with the testing out-sourced if necessary.
The document also calls for improvements in road maintenance, in which many IEI members are involved. It said there should be clear road markings (centre line, edge line and stop lines) on all roads countrywide.
Mr Purcell acknowledged that these proposals would be costly to implement fully. But he pointed out that the current carnage cost at least €1 billion in health costs, loss of productivity and human cost, of which €250 million was a direct cost to the economy.