[PR] Cycle to Protest Against the NSC anti-cycling policy

Victor

National Safety Council Campaign
Cycle to Protest Against the NSC anti-cycling policy

The Dublin Cycling Campaign (DCC) is organising a protest cycle and rally calling for the scrapping of the discredited National Safety Council (NSC) and its replacement with a new organisation that will represent the rights of all road users.
Date: Friday 25th July
Cycle start: Meeting 6.15pm at the Garden of Remembrance
Cycle end: 7pm outside NSC offices 4 Northbrook Road, Ranelagh.

The DCC have put a lot of organisation into this event and expect large numbers to attend. We have also been guaranteed television coverage of the event.

Why we think the NSC should be scrapped
1. There is no pedestrian or cycling representative on the board of the NSC - but 2 representatives from the motoring industry. This is despite the fact that pedestrian and cycling deaths account for 25% of all road deaths.

2. The lack of NSC action on the issue of Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs) which are too large for the Dublin Port Tunnel being allowed to continue through the city centre. HGVs account for 75% of cycling deaths in the city, yet the NSC does nothing.

3. Their failure to admit that Penalty Points introduction is failing due to lack of enforcement. The fact is that roads deaths have spiralled in recent months as the public realise they just won't get caught - e.g. May 2002 (20 road deaths) - May 2003 (38 road deaths).

Though 99% of cars speed in built up areas (National Road Authority survey 2002) 6 months into penalty points only 2% of motorists have received penalty points for speeding. The chance of getting caught if you speed in Sweden is 1:9, in Ireland it is 1:1400.

4. Facts on drink driving enforcement that the NSC are not telling the public
a. the average motorist can expect to be breathalyzed every 130 years (in Victoria, Aus. it is every 18 months)
b. from being caught to being put of the road in Ireland takes between 6 months and 2 years (in Victoria, Aus. 1-2 days)

5. NSC's "boy racer" safety campaign - The NSC's June bank holiday anti-speeding campaign was launched on Grafton street and featured Pat Costello (Chief Executive of the NSC) standing next to the new Alfa Romeo 156 (0-60mph in 8 seconds and top speed of 137mph). The NSC has refused to explain why it allowed it's safety campaign to be used as a launch for a sports car.

6. Lack of decline in road deaths - in the period 1997-2002 road deaths fell from 472 to 380. Yet what the NSC fails to tell the public is that in the period 1992-1997 road deaths rose from 415 to 472. Over the 1990s road deaths in EU fell by on average 15%. The only EU country to show an increase was Ireland where deaths rose by 2%. Apart from the welcome blip in the figures associated with penalty points road deaths number are NOT declining.


What the Dublin Cycling Campaign want
1. The current board sacked and replaced by a board with pedestrian, commuter cycling and motoring representatives.
2. A Safety campaign that is based on a policy of "ensuring the roads are safe for all road users".
3. Our safety policy needs to reflect the real life saving benefits of promoting cycling and walking to help stem the explosion in obesity, diabetes and air pollution associated with our current car culture.
4. A strong independent Safety board with the courage to tackle the issue of lack of garda enforcement, lack of speed cameras, lack of random breath testing or drug testing.

Hope you can come along.

Victor

Critical Mass Cycle this Friday!
The streets are for everyone – cyclists, pedestrians, children playing. Don’t let some jerk run you off the road with the bull bars on his four-wheel drive. Join the Critical Mass cycle from the Garden of Remembrance, Parnell Square at 6pm on the last Friday of every month. Email dublincriticalmass@yahoo.com for a reminder once per month! (One email per month, no junk mail, unsubscribe whenever you like, your address kept private.) 100 or more cyclists do leisurely a tour of the city centre to show everyone how much nicer Dublin is with more cyclists and less road rage – Bring your Friends!

Victor

Just a reminder that this is on tonight (Friday). All welcome.

Victor

http://home.eircom.net/content/irelandcom/breaking/1090324?view=Eircomnet

Road investment a 'crunch issue', says Safety Council
From:ireland.com
Friday, 25th July, 2003

The chairman of the National Safety Council has said investment in the State's road infrastructure will be a "crunch issue" for the Department of Finance in the upcoming budget.

Speaking in the wake of three road deaths in Co Limerick last night, Mr Eddie Shaw said this morning the road infrastructure was "improving all the time" but more money was needed to save lives.

"This is simply coming down, now, to a matter of investment and undoubtedly it is going to be a crunch issue this year for the Department of Finance," he told RTÉ's Morning Ireland.

"At a time of scarce budgetary resources the question is will the Department of Finance recognise the benefit, in both financial terms and in the absence of pain and suffering to our community, when we can show that we can dramatically reduce the incidences of deaths and injuries on our roads by proper investment".

He defended the penalty points system saying: "Penalty points has only just begun. The impact of this is going to accumulate over a lengthy period of time.

"Behaviour is changing because of enforcement primarily plus the work done by the Safety Council, the medical bureau, the Department of Transport and many others," Mr Shaw added.

Victor

So we went along this evening, complete with RTÉ TV crew, etc. Generally a good response, with 50-100 taking part.

Except for one (really foul mouthed) 10 year old heckler who initially said he would get his father to arrest us (something about his father working for the NSC). He tried to get a motorbike cop to arrest us (the cop told him to "Get off the road.").

http://www.indymedia.ie/newswire.php?story_id=60551

Victor

http://home.eircom.net/content/unison/national/1094763?view=Eircomnet

Spend more on roads to save lives, says safety chief
From:The Irish Independent
Saturday, 26th July, 2003
Grainne Cunningham

IMPROVING roads could dramatically reduce the number of fatal accidents and was a "crunch issue" for Government in the next budget, the chairman of the National Safety Council said yesterday.

Speaking after the deaths of five teenagers and a baby girl within two days, Eddie Shaw said investment in the State's road infrastructure would pay dividends both in financial terms and in the absence of pain and anguish to the community.

Young drivers feature prominently in the fatalities, not because they are bad drivers, but because they are inexperienced and are not used to the risk situations that happen on the roads, he said.

"I would argue - and I know it's an extreme thing to say - that there's no such thing as a dangerous road, there's simply an inappropriate speed at which to travel on it", he said.

Mr Shaw made his comments as the National Safety Council (NSC) revealed that fatalities overall are down on last year.

A total of 201 people have died on Irish roads this year, compared to 224 deaths up to July 25, 2002, a drop of 23. The number of road fatalities to date in July 2003 is 26.

NSC Chief Executive Pat Costello stressed that the penalty points system had saved 68 lives and prevented 300 serious injuries in the first six months of the year.

A couple were last night preparing to bury a second son who died in tragic circumstances following a crash which claimed the lives of three teenagers. Seamus Keogh (18) from Herbertstown, Co Limerick was killed when his car was involved in a head-on collision on Thursday. Two passengers, 16-year-old Naomi Mulcahy and 18-year-old James Ryan were also killed. Five years ago Seamus's older brother Patrick (21) died after falling from a balcony in Spain.

Eddie Shaw said investment in the State's road infrastructure would pay dividends both in financial terms and in the absence of pain and anguish to the community.

A campaign of enforcement and remedial action at accident blackspots would be much better.

"I would argue - and I know it's an extreme thing to say - that there's no such thing as a dangerous road, there's simply an inappropriate speed at which to travel on it", he said.

I think a road is dangerous when a large number of users don't appreciate the dangers. This is like saying "Guns aren't dangerous - just shooting people is an inappropriate use of them."

Mr Shaw made his comments as the National Safety Council (NSC) revealed that fatalities overall are down on last year.

NSC Chief Executive Pat Costello stressed that the penalty points system had saved 68 lives and prevented 300 serious injuries in the first six months of the year.

This is wrong - I belive the correct context of these figures is in the first six months of penalty points. Further the last few months have been considerably worse than last year (and the five year average).

DadaKopf

Yes'm of course! Build more roads! That's what we need to cut down on road deaths!!!

I should have gone to this NSC protest because it's right near my house but I didn't know it was on.

The DCC proposals are good but the government's so blinkered they won't do anything that requires effort and change unless it's sexy. Not even the Tobin Tax, which everyone LOVES.

Ah well.