Sir, - I am convinced that there would be fewer fatal or near-fatal accidents on Irish roads if the average driver exercised a little courtesy and followed some of the basic guidelines set out in the Rules of the Road.
I drive throughout Ireland regularly on business, and since my recent move to Wicklow town I now also commute to Dublin most mornings. I am appalled at the standard of driving that I witness daily.
There is a total disregard for speed limit signs, and as a driver in a line of traffic, one is expected to keep up with the vehicle in front, maintaining speeds of up to 50 m.p.h. in a 30 m.p.h. zone, and up to 80 m.p.h. on the open road. Maybe this is due to the theory that the car in front will be caught for speeding and all others will get away with it.
There is a total lack of awareness regarding stopping distances at different speeds, and this is openly displayed by arrogant drivers who insist on driving as close as possible to the car in front of them, possibly in the hope that the driver in front will feel so threatened that he or she will pull over to let the offender pass.
Thanks to the introduction of new traffic calming measures and quality bus corridors, tempers are frayed and common courtesy has gone out the window. The relatively easy manoeuvre of merging into a traffic lane has become a nightmare, with people unwilling to give way just in case they lose their valuable position in the queue for the next set of traffic lights.
During the 1960s and 1970s there were several television campaigns highlighting these problems on the roads in England, and they were quite successful. It is now time to educate Irish drivers in a similar manner. More emphasis should be put on increasing public awareness in this regard, hopefully making the roads safer and reducing the number of fatal accidents. - Yours, etc.,
Robin D. Heather, Seapoint, Dunbur Lower, Wicklow Town.