The Road Safety Officer of Donegal County Council is urging motorists to be wary of driver fatigue, asking for everyone to “work together to ensure this bank holiday weekend is free from tragedy”.
A special Road Safety Awareness event is taking place along the N2 this Friday, at McCaughey’s Service Station at Broomfield in Co Monaghan.
This event has been organised to coincide with the Bank Holiday weekend when an increased number of people are expected to take to the roads.
Experts will be on hand to provide advice on various road safety issues including the dangers of driver fatigue which is a contributory factor in as many as 1 in 5 driver deaths in Ireland every year.
Brian O’Donnell, Road Safety Officer with Donegal County Council is delighted to be supporting this event and says that the aim of the bank holiday weekend event is to encourage road users to take personal responsibility for how they use the roads.
He says that the “N2 is well travelled by people from Donegal, it is the main access route to Dublin from many parts of the county”.
Provisional collision statistics from the Road Safety Authority show that during the period beginning January 2013 to date, there were 30 fatalities on County Monaghan roads, half of which occurred on the N2.
A recent report from Road Plan Consultants who carried out a safety audit for Monaghan County Council on a stretch of the N2 from Drumgeeny to Castleblayney showed that 90% of accidents on this road were related to driver behaviour with over 70% of fatalities occurring as a result of head-on collisions.
Brian O’Donnell describes driver fatigue as the silent killer on our roads saying “thousands of people will be taking to the roads over the holiday weekend and for many, there are long journeys ahead.
“Driver fatigue can creep up on you slowly and it is impossible to fight it while you are driving, yet the risks can be tragic.
“We are appealing to everyone to recognise the signs that you are becoming tired behind the wheel of the car, take appropriate action and protect yourself, your passengers and other road-users.
“Equally, if you’re a passenger in a car being driven by a tired driver, speak up. Ask the driver to pull over safely, and follow the advice.
“Let’s all work together to ensure this bank holiday weekend is free from tragedy”.
Motorists will also have the chance to experience the Road Safety Authority’s ‘Shuttlebus’ and “Rollover” simulator allowing you to experience, in a virtual setting, the dangers of driving and texting and driver fatigue and see how driving environments and speed affect your braking distances on the brake reaction timer.
There will also be opportunities to learn about tyre safety, practice your driving skills on car, motorbike & bicycle simulators, take a road safety quiz in the activity zone, practice the driver theory test on board, test your fancy footwork by dancing to the Safe Cross Code in the activity zone and practice your safe cycling skills on the state of the art bicycle simulator.
The RSA advice to drivers who feel tired while driving is to ‘Stop, Sip and Sleep’. Stop the car in a safe place, Sip a caffeine drink, and Sleep for 15-20 minutes. This should enable you to continue driving for another hour or so.
So if you are on the N2 this Friday, stop and take a break from driving and check out the Road Safety Awareness event at McCaughey’s Service Station from midday to 7pm.
This awareness event is being jointly organised by McCaughey’s Service Station and Monaghan County Council and is also supported by Monaghan Gardaí, the Road Safety Authority, Monaghan Fire and Rescue Service and the Donegal Road Safety Working Group.
