[Article] Driving curfews 'the key to cutting road carnage'

Victor

http://home.eircom.net/content/unison/national/9174795?view=Eircomnet

Driving curfews 'the key to cutting road carnage'
From:The Irish Independent
Monday, 30th October, 2006

Graduated licensing system 'dramatically cuts fatalities total'

MORE than 350 young inexperienced motorists have agreed to a nighttime driving curfew in exchange for cheaper insurance.

They agreed not to drive between 11pm and 6am, seven days a week.

But they were in the minority of the 45,000 drivers who agreed to take part in the Ignition training programme run by Hibernian Insurance.

Dick O'Driscoll, Hibernian chief executive, said those who signed up to the curfew got an extra 10pc discount on their insurance on top of the normal reduction for taking part in the course.

He described as "a ludicrous situation" the fact that more than 250,000 drivers have either failed or never sat a driving test here.

"This is clearly unacceptable," said Mr O'Driscoll.

He supported the proposal from the Road Safety Authority that inexperienced drivers be restricted to low-engine vehicles for a set period. These could be up to 1.3litre or 1.4litre.

Meanwhile, XS Direct, a company which provides specialist motor insurance products, said the introduction of a graduated driving licence system similar to that found in Canada, Australia, New Zealand and in the USA could have a significant impact on the current carnage.

It said the key to curtailing road deaths in Ireland is to regulate the driving times, rules and learning procedures for this group and in particular the 405,000 provisional drivers licences on our roads.

Under the ideal system, a first-time Irish road licence holder:

* Is subject to a driving curfew starting at 9pm (until 6am the following morning).

* Must undergo at least 50 hours of recorded supervised driving. Quality experience has been shown to reduce the likelihood of crashes.

* Is restricted from carrying other youths in the car.

Statistics also show that those carrying other young passengers are more likely to be involved in an accident. Chris McCann, XS direct managing director said: "A programme such as this is now needed in Ireland more than ever. The escalation in figures of Irish under-25s and immigrants dying in road accidents cannot continue."

"It is imperative now that some sort of practical action is taken. The programme described has a proven track record in the States and Australia and it directly addresses those who are most at risk on Irish roads."

"By implementing rules and regulations, and monitoring the practices of this group, we would all be taking ownership and responsibility of the problem and by reducing the risk exposure, such as taking away the keys on the weekend nights, ultimately the temptations and dangers are eliminated," said Mr McCann.

The introduction of a graduated licensing system in the USA over the past 20 years has been largely credited with the reduction in the number of road deaths from 9,524 teenagers in 1980 to 5,610 in 2004.

That's a 47pc decrease for males and a 25pc drop for females. The reduction in the fatality rate per thousand from 33.4 to 19.1 has also been dramatic.

Mr McCann said a graduated driving licence system in Ireland would involve enforcing a new law that delays young people and learner drivers obtaining their full licence until a time that they are thoroughly prepared.

This intermediary period ensures all learner and young drivers get the initial driving experience in lower risk situations and conditions.

He said this process ensures a level of maturity and a responsibility amongst provisional drivers before they are awarded their full licence.

Treacy Hogan

Chris_533976

Or maybe abolish the shambles that is the Provisional Licence, introduce MANDATORY driving lessons, overhaul the disgrace that is the rules of the road booklet and fix up the roads so people arent passing tractors on windy S2 national primary routes. Cut out the joke that is the "Get a licence on your 17th birthday and go out driving without so much as ever having sat in a drivers seat".

Although the guy makes some good points, this seems like a frivolous exercise to me that could easily be bettered just by bringing Ireland up to the European average of driver education.