[Article] IRHA drives safety message home

Victor

http://www.sbpost.ie/web/DocumentView/did-17215190-pageUrl--2FThe-Newspaper-2FSundays-Paper-2FNews.asp

IRHA drives safety message home
27/10/03 00:00
By Niamh Connolly

Road design and surface quality should be investigated after all traffic accidents, according to the Irish Road Hauliers' Association (IRHA).

Launching the association's Life or Death campaign, IRHA spokesman Jimmy Quinn criticised motorway maintenance during last week's cold snap.

"Building motorways is one thing, but maintaining them is another. The conditions on the M1 motorway last week were a disgrace, with no gritting for wet weather conditions. On a steep decline, an articulated truck could have skidded across the road where there is no central barrier," said Quinn.

The association is urging drivers to switch on daytime headlights during the winter months. A headlight campaign last year by Dublin City Council was widely welcomed, but a government committee stopped short of endorsing compulsory daytime headlights.

The high level group on national road safety is now considering the council's campaign and will study accident statistics to be made available by the National Roads Author ity (NRA) shortly.

"They should have been much more positive about it. It is surprising the number of motorists with defective eyesight. In winter particularly, when the sun is low in the sky and there is a high number of dark days, it is important that everyone is able to see," said Quinn.

The IRHA is particularly critical of the design of interchanges. Quinn said the new roundabouts at Enfield and Carlow were too narrow for articulated trucks.

"We're not happy with the design," he said. "They make the centre of the roundabout as big as possible for planting flowers and so on, but the lane is too narrow.

"There has been at least one incident of a truck overturning at the Enfield roundabout," he said.

The IRHA's campaign features posters on the rear of heavy goods vehicles (HGV) and a school poster campaign showing the danger zones around a HGV with the slogan `If you can't see the driver, he can't see you'.

There will also be a media campaign on the road safety awareness of the haulage industry.