Call for reflective jackets for children

Reflective armbands or jackets should be issued to every school-going child in the country, according to Fine Gael frontbencher Denis Naughten, who said it was important now that clocks had gone back and many children would be walking to and from school in the dark.

"Ireland has the highest rate of child pedestrian deaths in the EU with nearly 1,600 children killed or injured while walking on our roads in the six years from 1998 to 2003. Poor visibility on our roads, particularly during winter, is a significant factor," he said. He added that so far this year almost a fifth of the road deaths recorded by the Garda were pedestrian fatalities.

"Schoolchildren are at their most vulnerable at this time of year because of poor visibility and dangerous road conditions in the early mornings and in the evenings. For this reason it makes sense that the Department of Education issues every school-going child with a reflective armband, or jackets bearing a road safety message.

"Only by educating our young people about the importance of road safety will we see a drop in the shockingly high levels of injury and death on our roads. No person can enter a building site without a reflective jacket, yet our children are walking along our roads, invisible to motorists during the long, dark nights of the winter months."

He said reducing speed limits outside schools was another measure that would prevent further fatalities. He called on the Department of Transport to provide funding for local authorities immediately to enable councils to proceed with the implementation of reduced speed limits outside schools.