The public should act as whistleblowers on the roads by reporting fellow drivers for dangerous or careless driving to gardai and acting as witnesses in court, a senior garda has said.
Commenting on the bank holiday weekend road death toll, Supt Vincent McGuire, of the Garda Traffic Branch, said his heart went out to the bereaved families. However, the deaths represented a "slap in the face" for the agencies combating road fatalities.
Seventeen people have died on Irish roads in the last seven days, 11 over the bank holiday weekend. "Despite all our best efforts to cut back on road deaths, this has happened. I was personally gutted," he said.
The total killed so far this year was 252 yesterday, a rise of four deaths on the same point last year.
Over the last three years three-quarters of all victims on the road were young men under 32 years, and last weekend six of the 11 deaths were in this category. Some 56 young men have died in single-vehicle accidents so far this year, compared to six women.
Supt McGuire urged parents to think twice before giving their son the car for a night out.
"Hire a car to take him to and from a venue. At least then you'll know he'll get home in one piece. My own son knows better than to ask for the car at night. Young men are naturally aggressive, and it carries over to their driving."
He also called on the public to report incidents of dangerous or careless driving to gardai even if no accident has resulted and stressed that a prosecution could be secured on their evidence.
"There is inappropriate driving going on out there, and any time you go out on the road you will see it. Whether it is through frustration or otherwise you will see people doing silly things, overtaking on continuous white lines or on the brow of a hill.
"I would ask people that if they feel badly enough about something they've seen, and they're prepared to go to court, to note the day, date, time and location and make a statement about it. Their evidence is as acceptable in any court in the land as a guard's evidence is," said Supt McGuire. Operation Samhradh, the current Garda traffic operation targeting the three "killer offences" of speeding, drink-driving and non-wearing of seatbelts, was enabling the force to "hold its own" against the fatality rate.
Detection rates will be further aided by the introduction of a laser speed-detection gun shortly to each station in the State. So far this year, 128,985 on-the-spot fines for speeding and 34,170 fines for seat-belt offences have been imposed, along with 5,448 summonses for drink-driving.
Supt McGuire said he looked forward to the introduction of the penalty-point system here as it had visibly succeeded in lowering fatality figures in the North on its introduction two years ago.
He also welcomed a proposed new theory test, to be included in the next Road Traffic Bill, which will have to be taken by an individual before they are granted a provisional licence.
According to 1998 figures, 17,700 drivers failed to produce driving licences at a Garda station for inspection after a road incident. Supt McGuire said a fairly high percentage of these were provisional drivers.
"There appears to be a certain amount of people out there who don't want to do a driving test. They're happy to keep renewing their provisional licence and are not serious about passing it. They don't seem to be motivated to become competent enough to pass," he added.