Motorists are being reminded to slow down or face expulsion from the road as a major Garda clampdown on speeding and other illegal driving behaviour intensifies today.
The five-day Operation Taisteal (Journey) began at midnight on Wednesday, and already hundreds of drivers have fallen foul of speed cameras and insurance and drink-driving checks.
Gardaí, 5,000 of whom are on traffic duty for the operation, plan to intensify their efforts as the weekend progresses, using both mobile units and static checkpoints.
They have listed speeding, drink-driving, the non-wearing of seatbelts and the "driving behaviour of young male drivers" as the four target areas for policing.
Along with the National Safety Council (NSC) and other concerned groups, they are hoping the introduction of the penalty points system will help to avoid a repetition of last Easter's casualty toll of five dead and 130 injured in road traffic incidents over the bank holiday weekend.
The NSC is running a special advertising campaign on local radio featuring its penalty points commercial, "Get the point - not the points!". For those travelling by road over the weekend, it recommends the following:
Always drive at an appropriate speed for the conditions and circumstances.
Never ever drink and drive.
Wear a seat belt and ensure all passengers front and rear are wearing theirs, too.
Plan your journey in advance and set off as early as possible to avoid heavy traffic.
Take frequent breaks to avoid tiredness/driver fatigue.
Be extra-alert. When on holiday drivers have a tendency to relax their guard, and be especially alert if driving on unfamiliar roads around your holiday destination.
The NSC pointed out that a 30 m.p.h. impact was equivalent to dropping a car from the top of a two-storey building, and a 60 m.p.h. impact from 11 storeys.
Gardaí said their enforcement activities would be visible on all road networks, with particular emphasis on collision-prone locations within each Garda division. A directive has been issued to every Garda station demanding local compliance with the operation.
Under Operation Taisteal, gardaí have also appealed for anyone who witnesses suspected drunken driving to report it immediately to the Garda.
A total of 87 people have been killed on Irish roads to date this year. At the end of last month the death toll was running 27 behind that for 2002.
However, a worrying increase in fatalities in the past six weeks has heightened fears that the effects of the penalty points system, introduced against speeding last October, may be lessening.
The Minister for Transport, Mr Brennan, announced an extension of the system this week, whereby uninsured drivers will be penalised from June 1st, and the non-wearing of seat-belts from July 1st.
As for the traffic forecast, AA Roadwatch said that with more sunshine forecast for today there could be congestion on approaches to coastal towns such as Salthill, Co Galway, or Tramore, Co Waterford.
Equally, traffic jams were likely on return routes into cities this evening.
Major events expected to cause traffic disruption include the three-day Fairyhouse Grand National racing festival in Co Meath, starting tomorrow, and a modified cars show which is due to attract up to 200,000 people to the RDS, Dublin, today and tomorrow.
Weblinks: www.penaltypoints.ie; www.nsc.ie; www.aaroadwatch.ie; www.garda.ie
