Madam, - As the number of road deaths continues to rise I find myself in agreement with Gay Byrne, chairman of the Road Safety Authority, when he says both himself and the Government are doing all they can, but that the message to slow down is not being heard by those who need to heed it most.
I'm far from being a supporter of the parties in Government, but I do believe there is only so much they can do. The responsibility to reduce the numbers being killed on our roads lies squarely with the driving public as well as with the legislators and the Garda Síochána.
Some Government members may not have set a great example by speeding in their ministerial cars, but we cannot expect those in power to change the attitudes of all those dangerous drivers out there. Rather, it is only by making such behaviour on the roads as socially unacceptable as murder, rape and burglary that the numbers of us being killed on the road will decrease. This is happening slowly, with the once widely tolerated practice of drink-driving slowly being made more offensive.
It will take time, but only we ourselves can decrease the chances of being involved in an accident on the country's roads. - Yours, etc,
KIERAN SULLIVAN, Georgestown, Kilmacthomas, Co Waterford.
Madam, - I see that Minister for Transport Martin Cullen has been praising gardaí for their increased visibility on the roads. Given the volume of traffic on the roads daily I do not believe that 46,000 detections of a breach in the speed limits over a three month period (say, 505 a day throughout the State) is especially dramatic. Without disrespect to the gardaí and the work they do they must have been issued with uniforms making them invisible as I certainly haven't noticed an increased presence. Another example of our politicians living in the real world? - Yours, etc,
ROGER KING,The Oaks, Churchtown, Dublin 14.
Madam, - It might help if, in addition to hearing of accidents on our roads, we also heard the cause of them. It is ridiculous to be blaming the Government, the police or the roads for our accidents. We love having a scapegoat for our own faults. The cry "something must be done" should be directed to each of ourselves. Accidents must be caused because of some negligence by drivers. So let us hear what caused them.
Second-level schools should have an obligatory programme about careful driving, but also about respect for human life. Life has become very cheap today, as we know from gangland killings as well as road accidents. We all need to co-operate in developing good road sense and care for the lives of others. - Yours, etc,
N. KEANE, Westbourne, Limerick.