Man who drove over girlfriend’s father helps at safety launch

A young man who drove over his girlfriend’s father has assisted the Road Safety Authority in publicising World Remembrance Day for road victims, which takes place on November 15th.

Michael Jackson and his girlfriend Maggie Bonner were both 24-years-old when Maggie’s father Frankie Bonner (65) died on a rural road between Ballycastle and Killala, Co Mayo, in the early hours of the morning. Mr Bonner had been out socialising and had a habit of walking home, hitching when he could, said his daughter. Mr Jackson was on an early morning job, delivering a van to Killala, when he said he “felt a bump in the road” and later discovered he had driven over Ms Bonner’s father whom he knew well.

On Tuesday Mr Jackson and Ms Bonner carried a framed photograph of Mr Bonner when they met Road Safety Authority chairwoman Liz O’Donnell and Minister for Transport Paschal Donohoe at the press launch for remembrance day. “We are here to remember,” said Mr Jackson, who credited Mayo Co Council road safety officer Noel Gibbons with getting involved.

Also at the launch was Sean Dixon who was involved as a pillion passenger in a motorcycle crash in July 2011 as he and a friend left the summit in Howth. “I hit the wall at 80 km/h and my helmet split in two”, he said. Following two years in rehabilitation Mr Dixon has been discharged from the Army due to anger management and memory loss issues. He is now on a disability allowance. “I’m trying to keep my life on track” he said.

According to Ms O’Donnell the authority was recognising World Remembrance Day which commemorates not just those who died, but also those whose lives were irreversibly changed through road traffic crashes. She said while more than 23,000 people had been killed on the State’s roads since record keeping began, more then 77,000 others had suffered serious injuries.

Ms O’Donnell instanced non-compliance with road safety regulations as one of the biggest causes of deaths and serious injuries.

“Of those who were killed in crashes last year 26 were not wearing seat belts,” she said. Speeding remained possibly the major issue, she said. “If people reduced their speed by just 10 km/h between now and Christmas, it would make a huge difference to the numbers of deaths and serious injuries.”

Chief Supt Mark Curran said one-third of those killed on the roads so far this year were not wearing a seat belt. He said a residual number of drivers were not getting the message about the danger of speed, the absence of seat belts, drink-driving and using a mobile phone. Some drivers continued to perceive a small risk in the main causes of crashes and overestimate their ability, but a momentary lapse could cause devastation. He said the families at the launch of World Remembrance Day sent “ a powerful message” of how lives could be forever altered.

Mr Donohoe said the most important message was the “responsibility people have when they get behind the wheel of a car in keeping our roads safe”. He said the next big legislative move would be “tackling the huge threat of drug-driving”.

However, he said he did not plan to change the maximum sentence for driving causing death, currently at 10 years, to bring it into line with the UK where the maximum sentence is 14 years.

“I believe that the sanctions we have in place in relation to road-traffic offences at the moment are proportionate” he said.