Call for universal road safety and driver-theory programmes in Irish schools

Irish schools should provide every student with road-safety and driver-theory education, according to Social Democrats TD Aidan Farrelly. He said the current arrangement, which asks teachers to use available materials when they have time, leaves too much of a gap.

Speaking on RTÉ’s Drivetime, Farrelly said the Road Safety Authority has an eight- to 10-session manual for transition-year and fifth-year students. But he argued that “very little” road-safety education currently takes place in classrooms.

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very little

The Social Democrats want a small fund to create 50 development-officer positions within the RSA. Those officers would visit schools, youth services and Youthreach centres to make sure young people receive adequate instruction.

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the magnitude of the weapon that you’re in control of

Farrelly said the sessions should cover all aspects of road safety, including firsthand lessons from people involved in collisions, gardaí and first responders. He said young people need to understand “the magnitude of the weapon that you’re in control of”.

He also pointed to dangerous behaviour promoted through social media, including TikTok trends. A universal programme, he said, would give drivers, pedestrians and cyclists the same standard of education while creating a safe setting where students could question behaviour they may otherwise regard as normal.

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If there’s a universal approach applied to this, then we can be assured that the next generation of road users, whether they be drivers, pedestrians or cyclists, are getting the same standard of education.