The proposed new statutory road safety body to replace the National Safety Council (NSC) was a step in the right direction but would not work if it was solely a Department of Transport venture, NSC chairman Eddie Shaw said yesterday.
Mr Shaw, who has been an outspoken critic of the Government over its road safety strategy, said there needed to be Cabinet support for a joint initiative involving the Departments of Transport, Justice and Health.
He rejected suggestions that the setting up of a road safety authority would be seen as a criticism of the NSC.
"No, not at all, if anything it would reflect what the NSC has been saying for a period of time," he said.
Provision for the establishment of the new road safety authority, which would have increased powers and resources, will be made in a Bill.
Mr Shaw said the NSC had known about the proposal for a relatively short time. It was under the direction of the Minister for Transport and the NSC did not know the shape or structure of the new body as yet.
He said the NSC had made formal submissions that road safety policy needed a central body.
"There is no central point for decisions to be made," he said. A new authority would be a step in the right direction but it was going to be difficult, he said. There was a need for the Ministers of Transport, Justice and Health to be involved.
"Road safety is an investment programme and the Government needs to spend more and take the issue seriously. The Departments of Transport, Justice, with the gardaí, and Health and Social Welfare, which deal with the consequences, should all be involved," he said.
So far this year, 241 people have been killed on the roads, two more than for the same period last year.
Meanwhile, the Irish Red Cross has called on children to fill out a questionnaire on how they travel to school each day and on what dangers they face.
Red Cross vice-chairman Tony Lawlor said schoolchildren across Europe were being asked to participate in the survey.
"Our aim is to get the whole picture about road dangers and young people and see what we in the Red Cross with our track record and expertise in safety can do to improve this tragic situation," he said.