Galway city Labour councillor, Niall Mc Nelis, has welcomed the introduction of new driving offences which he said will place a renewed focus on child safety and clampdown on unnecessary risky behaviour.
Seven new driving offences came into effect over the August bank holiday weekend. All but one of these concern the use of seat belts. Statistics released by the Road Safety Authority (RSA ) earlier this month have shown that in the first six months of this year 23 per cent of drivers killed and 29 per cent of passengers killed were not wearing seat belts.
Councillor McMelis had this to say: “Seven new motoring-related offences were rolled out over this bank holiday weekend with a particular focus on seat belts. Drivers will be penalised for not having their children in an appropriate child restraint, such as a child or booster seat. Drivers will also face penalty points and a fine if they fail to encourage teenagers to wear seat belts.”
He went on to say: “We have to change driver behaviour that continues to present a risk to passengers’ and other road users’ safety. The success to date of the Road Safety Authority bodes well for future success in further reducing the numbers killed on our roads. But one in five (20 per cent ) of those killed in road accidents are still passengers who are not wearing appropriate restraints. Other offences that will be clamped down on are seat belt use for bus and truck drivers and ban of use of mobile phones.”
