Safe Speed Forums

Lowering speed by 5% saves 50 lives
Written by Staff Reporter
Wednesday, 23 June 2010

Experts from Ireland, the UK, Sweden and Belgium were in Dublin recently for the Road Safety Authority's (RSA) third international conference. The theme of the conference was speeding, as the RSA, An Garda Síochána and other stakeholders work towards the roll-out of the safety camera network later this year.

The RSA research presented highlighted the significant role speed plays in deaths and serious injuries. In addition to being directly responsible for one third of road deaths every year (80 deaths in 2009), it is also a factor in the remaining 160 deaths, 1,000 serious injuries and anything up to 7,000 minor injuries. The research also revealed that reducing speed by just five per cent could save up to 50 lives every year.

Speaking about the conference, Noel Dempsey TD, Minister for Transport, said: "It's a proven fact that speed has a direct relationship with collision severity. The higher the speed, the greater the likelihood of death or serious injury in a collision. We should never lose sight of the reasons why we continue to invest our time, energy and money into road safety. We want to reduce needless suffering on families across the country and it is this objective that really underpins our own road safety strategies."

Noel Brett, Chief Executive of the Road Safety Authority (RSA), said it was important to remind people of the risks associated with excessive or inappropriate speeding.

"Reducing your speed by just five per cent could reduce road deaths by 20 per cent and injuries by ten per cent. But breaking the speed limit by just 5km/h could mean the difference between life or death for pedestrians, cyclists or unrestrained passengers travelling in the car. Hit by a car at 60km/h, nine out of ten pedestrians will be killed."

Also speaking at the conference, Superintendent Con O'Donohue, An Garda Siochana, outlined the upcoming safety camera strategy.

"In Ireland, enforcement will be focused on speed enforcement zones on the road network which have a history of speed related death and injury. It's important to note that the operator will be paid on the basis of the number of hours spent enforcing speed limits and not on the basis of detections. This is about saving lives and preventing injuries, not about catching people."

Ms Ellen Townsend, Policy Director at the European Transport Safety Council (ETSC), highlighted the progress made in other EU countries as a result of implementing a safety camera network.

"Speeding could be responsible for as many as 11,000 deaths in the EU every year. However, in countries where a safety camera network has been implemented, deaths and injuries as a result of speeding have dropped significantly," she said.

"In France, road deaths fell by 30 per cent in the period 2002 to 2005 - safety cameras were responsible for 75 per cent of this reduction. Following the introduction of safety cameras in Spain in 2008, average speeds dropped by up to 4km/h, depending on the type of road. We estimate that more than 2,200 deaths could be prevented in the EU every year if average speeds dropped by just 1km/h on EU roads, so we would urge the Irish government to prioritise the roll-out of the network of safety cameras this year."

Dr Áine Carroll, Consultant in Rehabilitation Medicine at the National Rehabilitation Hospital, gave an overview of the consequences of speeding from a medical perspective.

"Over the past five years, 331 people have come to our hospital as a result of road collisions, many of which were caused by speeding. The injuries they sustained ranged from traumatic brain injuries to spinal cord injuries and amputations. Every day, we work with these people to help them learn how to live with these permanent injuries but the reality is that they may never live a normal life again because of their decision to drive dangerously."

Swedish research into the effectiveness of this system suggests that speed cameras reduce the number of fatalities by 20 to 30 per cent and the number of people killed or seriously injured by 20 per cent, Matts Belin of the Swedish Transport Administration told the conference.

Professor Stephen Stradling, Professor Emeritus at Edinburgh Napier University, presented his findings into the effects and effectiveness of safety cameras in the UK. He suggested that fixed cameras were a better option than the mobile cameras that are part of the roll-out programme for Ireland later in October.

Speaking about the conference, Noel Dempsey TD, Minister for Transport, said: "It's a proven fact that speed has a direct relationship with collision severity. The higher the speed, the greater the likelihood of death or serious injury in a collision.

Noel Brett, Chief Executive of the Road Safety Authority (RSA), said it was important to remind people of the risks associated with excessive or inappropriate speeding.

"Reducing your speed by just five per cent could reduce road deaths by 20 per cent and injuries by ten per cent. But breaking the speed limit by just 5km/h could mean the difference between life or death for pedestrians, cyclists or unrestrained passengers travelling in the car. Hit by a car at 60km/h, nine out of ten pedestrians will be killed."

However, in countries where a safety camera network has been implemented, deaths and injuries as a result of speeding have dropped significantly," she said.

"In France, road deaths fell by 30 per cent in the period 2002 to 2005 - safety cameras were responsible for 75 per cent of this reduction.

"Over the past five years, 331 people have come to our hospital as a result of road collisions, many of which were caused by speeding.

Following the introduction of safety cameras in Spain in 2008, average speeds dropped by up to 4km/h, depending on the type of road. We estimate that more than 2,200 deaths could be prevented in the EU every year if average speeds dropped by just 1km/h on EU roads, so we would urge the Irish government to prioritise the roll-out of the network of safety cameras this year."

Hit by a car at 60km/h, nine out of ten pedestrians will be killed."

So reduce this figure by 5% to 57KM/H and how many out of ten will be killed? ...my guess is 9

Dr Áine Carroll, Consultant in Rehabilitation Medicine at the National Rehabilitation Hospital, gave an overview of the consequences of speeding from a medical perspective.

"Over the past five years, 331 people have come to our hospital as a result of road collisions, many of which were caused by speeding. The injuries they sustained ranged from traumatic brain injuries to spinal cord injuries and amputations. Every day, we work with these people to help them learn how to live with these permanent injuries but the reality is that they may never live a normal life again because of their decision to drive dangerously."

What do they want in a real world?