The Road Safety Authority's new Safety Measures:

So the RSA finally has grabbed the Government's balls and forced them to act even moreso than the paying of lip service to the issue, which has been the norm hitherto, on the Road Safety Issue. The measures which they have announced on Learner drivers are pretty standard run of the mill measures, which could have been introduced a long time ago, given the political will necessary for example After failing a Driving test, applicants were able to drive away from the test centre! I should know I did it twice myself.
Did I feel guilty about that, maybe. Did it stop me driving my car. No. Because why? It was not an offense to do it & I was not breaking the law (I was also on my second provisional license as well, which meant I could do it legally without a fully licensed driver!). However One thing I am glad about all this, is that I am no longer a Learner driver anymore so this does not affect me majorly in any way!
HOWEVER in saying that, complacency is a driver's worst enemy & just because you have had your license for some 50years, 25 years, 2 years, 2 minutes, is no reason for the flouting of legislation & road safety advice.


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Government announces crackdown on learner drivers
25/10/2007 - 19:17:28

Learner drivers who flout laws on travelling unsupervised were today warned they face hefty fines in a major road safety crackdown.

Provisional licence holders must have a fully qualified driver of at least two years experience in the car with them from next Tuesday, under the new provisions.

There are presently around 420,000 provisional licence holders in country.

The measures form part of the Government's latest road safety strategy which it vows will prevent 400 deaths over the next five years.

While 126 specific actions were outlined in the plan - all with built in timeframes between now and 2012 - an expected imminent reduction in the drink driving limit has yet to be decided.
[.................]

Gay Byrne, RSA chairman, said the new measures were necessary as inexperience was one of the major causes of road accidents in Ireland.

"It's absolutely statistically true that the 17 to 26-year-old male - and it's a male problem, not a female problem - are among the most dangerous drivers on the road," he said.

"Because young men suffer from a disease which can only be described as '17 to 26' - that is the disease in itself."

Contd: http://www.breakingnews.ie/archives/?c=IRELAND&jp=mhmhmhqlaukf&d=2007-10-25


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Also


Learner drivers' cars to have speed restricted
25/10/2007 - 20:30:23

Technology will be installed in every car used by a leaner driver that will cap its power, under plans unveiled today.

Road safety chiefs want to limit the acceleration or capacity of engines being used by inexperienced motorists as part of a crackdown on road deaths.

Noel Brett, chief executive of the Road Safety Authority (RSA), said that once the right device or technology is found new laws will be brought in to make it mandatory.

“We are searching to find the most appropriate way of limiting the power of a car – that already happens for motorcycles,” he said.

The road safety chief said bringing in restrictions on car engine size for learner drivers alone was too simplistic.

“That wouldn’t work and that would have all sorts of issues for our community,” he insisted, at the launch of the Government’s five-year road safety strategy.

“What we have to find is the mechanism to limit vehicles, mechanically or otherwise, that keeps people as safe as possible without denying them access to [safety] features that are on bigger cars.”

Mr Brett said research is already under way to find the most appropriate way of stopping inexperienced drivers getting behind the wheel of powerful cars.

The technology is also likely to limit anyone else using the same car.

contd: http://www.breakingnews.ie/archives/?c=IRELAND&jp=mhmhmhqlauey&d=2007-10-25