TWO OF the most urgently required road safety initiatives, which were promised to be introduced by the end of June in the Road Safety Strategy, have not been implemented.
The introduction of privatised speed cameras to provide around 6,000 hours of enforcement per month will be many months late as the Department of Justice only appointed a bidder for the contract, the Go Safe consortium, in June.
This project has been delayed by concerns within the department over the cost of the scheme. Negotiations are due to start shortly with the consortium and there is no set introduction date.
The other delayed project is activation of an administrative disqualification system for drink drivers marginally over the limit. Under this system, drivers without a drink driving conviction in the previous five years and with a blood alcohol level of between 80-100mg per 100ml of blood would be able to accept a six-month disqualification and a €300 fine rather than the standard two-year conviction.
The scheme was designed to curb the number of drink driving cases coming before the courts and to make allowances for drivers detected who were only marginally over the limit.
However, according to the Department of Transport, the measure is likely to be amended in the context of a lower drink drive limit, so no date for its introduction is available.
The Road Safety Strategy set June 30th as the deadline for a total of 13 targets.
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