“Children are not killed because they're not wearing high-vis vests. Children are killed because people are speeding, they are inattentive, they are drink driving, they're on their mobile phones, or the design of our roads is not appropriate, especially around schools and our communities.” -Cllr Alan Curran, Galway City Council
@IBIKEDublin a lack of decent street lighting seems to be contributing.
@BackFromTheDud @IBIKEDublin
There's no street lighting on country roads. And many city/suburb roads have dark spots. Anyone travelling on the road in the dark without reflective gear AND a light is in a very risky position. Whether it's a pedestrian, cyclist, motorcyclist, or car or tractor driver.
@PatrickOBeirne @BackFromTheDud 58% of the people killed on Irish roads last year while walking or cycling were killed during daylight hours. A further 30% were killed on streets with public lighting.
It's not the lack of hi-viz clothing that is causing these deaths.
@IBIKEDublin @BackFromTheDud
Not the daylight deaths, agreed. Though daylight visibility can be obscured by rain, fog, etc.
I'm reporting my experience as a car driver going from Dublin centre down to Wexford weekly at night. If we can reduce the 42% some way, that would be something. And reduce the many other non-fatal incidents.
@PatrickOBeirne @IBIKEDublin @BackFromTheDud
Being from Spain, this is the first time I have heard of putting high-vis vests on children. What the hell is happening in Ireland?
If people is speeding or driving drunk, fine them, remove their driving licenses or put them in jail, as every other sane country does, and stop making excuses. Sane people shouldn't be paying in blood for those pieces of shit.
And if somebody is stupid enough to go cycling at night with no lights, it is his responsibility, and his funeral.
If this is not enough, fine, try putting vests on whoever you want or fine cyclists.
But I think it is obvious you should start by the assholes who have no care about other people's security at all.
@jgg @IBIKEDublin @BackFromTheDud
Consider that the number of compliant drivers is greater than the drunks, and compliant drivers can still be surprised by a shadow crossing their field of vision as a dark object is revealed by a chance light with little time to react.
@PatrickOBeirne @IBIKEDublin @BackFromTheDud
My point is: don't put the horse before the cart.
Are you putting people in jail for driving drunk? Are you removing driving licenses to people because speeding? Are you putting radars, policemen or drug controls in critical and random places?
If the answer is 'no', forcing kids to wear vests is putting the horse before the cart.
Of course, you can put more lights on the roads (very important indeed), and recommend people to stop being stupid, even put fines on cyclist for being so, too.
I really don't know how bad is the situation in Ireland (I have never been there), but if it is as bad as this thread implies, pushing the brakes on reckless driving should be top priority, IMHO.
@jgg @IBIKEDublin @BackFromTheDud
Indeed, all those actions against bad drivers are needed. My point is that they are independent of a separate need for safety.
I don't see any reason to object to requiring people to protect themselves, just as we require drivers to wear seat belts. An unprotected body sharing a road with heavy machinery needs the same head protection and visibility as a person entering a workplace with moving machinery. That just seems like plain common sense to me.
@jgg @IBIKEDublin @BackFromTheDud
Not just children.
I'd like to reduce the number of "it's your funeral" cases by mandating visibility. Practically though I can see that that law would fall for the same reason that "no drunk driving " fails, drink/drug bans are hard to enforce unless detection can be improved. (Maybe by the in-car ignition breathalyser but again the problem is installed base.) But even when caught there are so many "get out of jail" cards to play.
1/2.