Numbers of gardaí in the Traffic Corps continued to fall in 2014 and are now less than 750.
That’s according to information from Minister for Justice Frances Fitzgerald who told Labour TD Tommy Broughan that Garda management continually reviews numbers in the corps “in the context of crime trends and policing priorities ”.
The corps’ complement peaked at about 1,200 in 2009 as the then government attempted to reduce fatal collisions on the State’s roads.
According to Mr Broughan the corps was credited with a significant reduction in road fatalities over the last decade. It had been used to map fatal, serious injury and minor injury collisions across the State’s road network; a move which allowed high-risk roads to be identified and categorised.
Random checks
Consequently, Garda man hours and other resources were directed to high-collision locations amid a large publicity campaign.
The corps was also regularly seen carrying out random alcohol checks and patrolling outside pubs.
According to the figures supplied to Mr Broughan the corps had 947 officers in 2011, 877 in 2012 and 811 in 2013. The decline has continued in 2014 and according to the Dublin North East TD the chief concern is that the slide is allowed to continue.
“There is no doubt the traffic corps were very successful but in line with these reductions in numbers the numbers of fatalities on our roads started to rise again in 2013 and 2014. I would be concerned that there is a connection” he said.
It has been several years since I’ve seen a Garda traffic vehicle on the M50, for example. And I think the visual presence of the Traffic Corps was a great deterrent,” he said.
