New driving regulations will require lead in time – Daly

While I welcome new moves to regularise driving regulation on our roads many provisional licence holders will require lead in time to make alternative arrangements to get to work says Cllr Richard Daly of Fine Gael

“I have been working over the past couple of years to lobby for an improvement in our road safety and fully support measures which will help to decrease injury or death among road users. However announcing regulations on the Thursday which will make it illegal for provisional licence holders to drive to work after t he weekend does not give adequate time to comply with legislation.

Up until today we have had a ridiculous provisional licence inconsistence which was difficult to enforce but over a weekend those who were on second provisional and entitled to drive unaccompanied have been told that after the weekend they have to have new arrangements in place for getting to work. Changes in legislation and enforcement require compliance time.

The confidence and support of the public need to be combined with diligent enforcement but giving three days notice to those who have been driving to work legally on a provisional licence does not seem like good practice.

Over the weekend the alcohol/blood limit could be dramatically dropped and would have had a dramatic result but unfortunately this was put on the long finger.

Over the weekend regulation to introduce either the expansion or the privitisation of the speed camera network could have been introduced but unfortunately this was put on the long finger.

Driving test waiting time in this region is in the order of six months so it is impossible for provisional drivers to comply with the new regulation for at least that length of time.

This is a typical example of grasping defeat from the jaws of success when such good initiatives are introduced so badly”

ENDS.