Sir, – In the past week four people were killed on the roads in Cork alone, and, according to Louise Roseingrave (Home News, April 14th), road deaths in Cork are up 50 per cent on last year. These are indeed striking statistics on a local level, but are really of wider national importance.
Even if we don’t know the people involved, road tragedies shock us as a community, particularly when they are in locations which we frequent. There is certainly the sense of “there but for the grace of God, go I”. Each road death is undoubtedly an unspeakable tragedy for the families and friends of those involved, and we of course must be sensitive to their suffering. However, once the news reports have gone and the short paragraphs in the papers are written, we usually hear no more. We might wonder what happened at that spot where a person was killed, what conditions led to this incident occurring, but we are never told.
To give the RSA its credit, it does publish historical statistical data on accidents (Road Collision Factbook series), but these documents are more a compendium of information much like a company’s annual report than useful educational and prevention tools. We are not advised that a mobile phone or alcohol was involved in a particular fatality, an inappropriate overtaking manoeuvre took place, a vehicle suddenly swerved to the wrong side of the road, or a tyre blew out because it was damaged, for example. Forensic engineering analysis for road traffic incidents exists and could be better used for society’s benefit.
Any other incident or accident, ranging from those in the workplace to aircraft crashes, is the subject of forensic inquiry, the findings of which are usually made public. Indeed, in the aviation sector, air accident reports are findings of fact and not of blame: they are conducted to inform the sector and the public of the circumstances of the incident for the very purpose of avoiding a recurrence.
As with all aspects of life, if we do not learn from our mistakes and the mistakes of others, avoiding the same mistakes repeating is more to do with luck than design. Death on our roads is no different. – Yours, etc,