Almost 800 people have been killed on Irish roads by drunk drivers during the past five years and, yesterday, Dublin and Belfast ministers joined together to launch a video campaign designed to make the roads on both sides of the border safer this Christmas. The campaign is being co-ordinated by the National Safety Council and the Northern Ireland Environment Department and is designed to shock and to shame motorists into behaving in a responsible fashion. The video is so graphic that it will not be screened on television until after 9 p.m. In tandem with the video, additional policing resources will be provided to members of the Garda and the RUC to clamp down on drink driving during the Christmas period.
In spite of previous anti-drink campaigns, fifty-seven people were killed on the roads last Christmas and some 40 per cent of those were drink related. The anti drink-driving message is just not getting through. Specifically, it is not getting through to men and to young males in particular. Almost 90 per cent of serious and fatal drink-related crashes are caused by men and two thirds of those are between the ages of 17 and 34 years. The situation is worsening. In the Republic, the latest official statistics, for 1998, showed a 16 per cent increase in the number of motorists driving with an excess of alcohol in their blood. In all, 10,000 offenders were charged. The RUC's road policing development branch regards the campaign as particularly important because it sends the message that wherever motorists go on the island, drink driving will not be tolerated. A special road safety campaign by the Garda Siochana will continue until January 7th and will involve the operation of 50,000 checkpoints. During that period, particular attention will be paid to offences involving drink driving, speeding and the non-wearing of seat belts. The special efforts being made by the Garda and the RUC to reduce the number of fatalities on the roads this Christmas is to be welcomed. But, on this side of the border at least, the police are operating under a serious handicap. More than two years ago, the Government announced a comprehensive strategy, Road to Safety, to address what the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, described as an unacceptable level of road deaths. This social problem was to be tackled "immediately and sympathetically" through a range of measures including random drink driver testing, the introduction of penalty points for certain motoring offences and special measures to crack down on speeding. The necessary legislation still has not been passed by the Dail. Ireland has the unenviable record of being close to the top of the European league in terms of road deaths per head of population. Our road fatality rate is twice that of Britain. As Christmas approaches, male drivers in particular - and their companions at parties and in public houses - are being challenged to keep our roads safer for the holiday season.