There were more arrests for driving while impaired in April than in any single month since 2012.
33% of all fatalities with a positive toxicology for alcohol took place in Galway (10%), Cork (11%) and Dublin (12%) in 2013 and 2014, according to research from the Road Safety Authority (RSA).
The research was revealed at the RSA annual international road safety conference on Thursday, which focussed on the crisis of alcohol on our roads and featured presentations from leading international experts on road safety and enforcement from Australia, USA, Sweden, Spain, Brussels, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
The findings relating to Ireland discussed at the conference included the following revelations:
- 57% of all fatalities with a positive toxicology for alcohol took place between 8pm and 4am.
- Alcohol consumption in conjunction with drug use is prevalent in road traffic crashes with 44% of fatalities found to have alcohol plus at least one other drug present.
- 65% of fatalities with a positive toxicology for alcohol took place on Saturday (17%), Sunday (23%) & Monday (24%).
- 33% of fatalities with a positive toxicology for alcohol took place during the summer months – June (13%), July (10%) & August (10%).
- 55% of all fatalities with a positive toxicology for alcohol were male driver/motorcyclist deaths.
Worryingly, meanwhile, there has been an increase of 18% in the number of arrests for driving under the influence (DUI) so far in 2017 compared with the same period in 2016, while April 2017 saw more arrests for drink driving than in any single month in the past five years.
Speaking ahead of the conference, Shane Ross, Minister for Transport. Tourism and Sport, said: “Drink-driving in this country remains a significant problem. That is why I brought the Road Traffic (Fixed Penalty-Drink Driving) Bill 2017 before the Oireachtas, which proposes that anyone detected driving over the legal limit will receive a mandatory disqualification from driving.
“This is essential legislation, designed to save lives. This Bill is based on scientific research, addressing drink driving at lower limits.
Liz O’Donnell, Chairperson of the RSA, added: “Road collision data and the latest arrest statistics confirm that drink driving is still a problem in Ireland. Consuming any alcohol impairs driving and increases the risk of a collision.
“Saving lives on Irish roads requires a zero-tolerance attitude to drink-driving. That is why the RSA supports the move to introduce an automatic disqualification for drivers found to be over the legal alcohol limit.”
A total of 63 people have died on Irish roads to date in 2017, a reduction of 13 compared to the same period last year.
