Operation Lifesaver, the current Garda campaign in the Louth/Meath division to reduce road deaths, is bound to be unpopular with many motorists. On last Monday, the first day of its operation, gardai caught 24 motorists speeding inside a 45-minute period and fined 18 of them on the spot. Yesterday's report in this newspaper quoted one garda's dry comment on the attitude of offenders: "They all plead innocence and they are all sorry."
On RTE radio yesterday, one rueful motorist admitted he had been caught travelling at 120 m.p.h. - twice the legal speed limit - by the unmarked Gatso van, which is equipped with a special speeddetection camera. While acknowledging his guilt, he still felt able to offer a few mitigating circumstances: he was on a dual-carriageway; the road was dry; traffic was very light; his car was fairly new. . .
But surely any driver who slows down long enough to think must accept the need for a crackdown on speeding and other traffic offences, for no excuses or prevarications can stand in the face of the facts of death on our roads. Last year 453 people lost their lives in road accidents, compared with 433 in 1995 and 404 in 1994. So far this year, 215 have died - 26 of them in the area where Operation Lifesaver is under way. Apart from the incalculable cost of lives lost and other lives blighted, each fatal accident represents an estimated cost of £800,000. When the campaign was announced, the Garda Commissioner, Mr Pat Byrne, rightly commented on the lack of public outcry about the carnage, compared with the widespread concern about the murder rate (42 deaths last year).
There is ample evidence - apart from common sense and the testimony of police and traffic experts - that speed is a major factor in the death toll, and that surveillance is an effective tactic in persuading motorists to slow down. On Wednesday, Britain's Highways Agency - the body charged with maintaining trunk roads and motorways - published a study showing that road deaths had fallen by 70 per cent in an area of west London three years after the introduction of Gatso cameras mounted by the roadside. The number of injuries had also dropped sharply. The estimated saving on accident costs, such as hospital treatment and insurance pay-outs for deaths, was estimated at £60 million.
Operation Livesaver - which is aimed at reducing drink-driving, dangerous driving and non-use of seatbelts, as well as speeding per se - is due to be evaluated after six months. If accidents are down - and it is hard to believe otherwise - there will be a strong case for extending the campaign to other counties. Given the appalling cost of deaths and injuries, this is an area where the Government must not stint on resources, human and technical. Recognising that education as well as enforcement is vital, the Garda plans also to take its message to the schools, supported by the National Safety Council, which is developing new material for use by primary teachers. But the prime responsibility for safer driving lies with drivers.