Ireland has made only "limited progress" on road safety and reducing fatal crashes, according to the latest assessment of the EU Road Safety Action Programme.
The programme, which is to submit its mid-term assessment to the European Commission tomorrow, aims to halve the number of people killed on EU roads from 50,000 to 25,000 by 2010.
Consultants compiling the assessment, the full details of which have yet to be released, have ranked the Republic among eight states which have made "limited progress" towards reducing the numbers killed and seriously injured in crashes.
Ireland's main road safety problems are speeding and drink-driving. However, because of the current testing regime relating to drink-driving there is "no reliable data" on the extent of the problem, the consultants said.
Much improvement is required in relation to speeding, they said. While there is a road safety strategy in place, it lacks a target for reducing serious injuries because there are no proper arrangements for recording injuries.
The introduction of penalty points had led to sharp reductions in the number of fatalities, but "to some extent the system had an initial charm of novelty".
It was difficult to assess what resources were applied to road safety, both in terms of manpower and budgets, they said. In the case of local authorities, the time spent working on road safety was generally not specified and the financial resources dedicated to improving road safety are usually included in the total costs of construction and maintenance.
Legislation enabling the gardaí to conduct an "appropriate form" of random testing for drink-driving will be an "important measure" in reducing deaths, while the expansion of the Garda Traffic Corps will be a "major advantage" in the road safety campaign .
Despite the need for greater progress, the consultants concluded that Ireland is dedicated to improving road safety and a serious effort is being made at all levels of Government and administration to achieve what they say are the ambitious targets the State has set.
