Most women killed in road crashes die at the hands of a male driver, road safety chiefs warned today.
In the latest attempt to curb boy racers and drink-drivers, women are being urged to turn the tide of massive road deaths by refusing to get into the car with irresponsible men.
The Road Safety Authority (RSA) is hoping its hard-hitting "He Drives, She Dies" campaign will strip away the motivation of male drivers to act recklessly behind the wheel.
RSA chief executive Noel Brett said the facts show men are the drivers in 80 per cent of fatal road crashes in Ireland.
“At the risk of offending male sensitivities, women need to know that they are being killed through male-dominated driver errors such as speeding and drink-driving,” he said.
Helping kick off the campaign, Rose of Tralee Aoife Kelly, who helps car crash patients with serious injuries in her work as an occupational therapist at the National Rehabilitation Hospital, called on women to seize the initiative.
“Ladies, you need to take a stand and not get into a car with a guy with a need for speed and a blatant disregard for his own and others right to life,” she said. “It’s a simple choice - live or die.”
RSA figures show more than two-thirds (67 per cent) of female passengers killed in the 10 years between 1998 to 2007 were being driven by a male driver.
The "He Drives, She Dies" campaign will include radio ads broadcast on radio stations during the high risk summer months , with the message that most female road deaths in Ireland are caused by male drivers.
“Reckless driving is not impressive and people do not realise the consequences of such crazy behaviour until they attend a funeral of a family member, best friend, or a lost loved one,” said Ms Kelly.
Reuters