Tipperary ROAD SAFETY STRATEGY 2018-2020

Contents

Foreword 5

1. Introduction 5

2. Mission Statement 6

3. Profile of County Tipperary 6

3.1 Transport and Vehicle Ownership in County Tipperary 6

3.2 The Economy of County Tipperary 7

3.3 Tipperary’s Road Network 8

3.4 Licensed Vehicles and Traffic Patterns 9

4. The National Context 9

4.1 Government Road Safety Strategy 2013-2020 13

4.2 Safe System’s Approach 14

5. Local Context 14

5.1 The Aims of Tipperary Road Safety Strategy 15

5.2 The Role of the Working Group 15

5.3 Factors Which Contribute to Collisions 15

5.4 Critical Interventions Needed to Sustain Progress 16

6. Road Safety Working Together Group 17

6.1 Stakeholders 17

7. The Four Pillars or the Four E’s of Road Safety 19

8. Action Plan 21

8.1 Education 21

8.2 Engineering 25

8.3 Enforcement 30

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8.4 Evaluation 32

9. Summary 34

10. List of Acronyms 35

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Foreword

The challenge has been set to raise Ireland’s road safety performance to that of the best performing countries in the world. This joint strategy sets out the collaborative approach to improving road safety until 2020 and the targeted actions to be delivered throughout County Tipperary. Significant progress can be achieved through a solid strategy of enhanced co-operation on education, engineering, enforcement and evaluation.

Building on former road safety interventions, there will be a co-ordinated approach to the delivery of services by the key stakeholders including An Garda Síochána, Tipperary County Council, Transport Infrastructure Ireland and the Road Safety Authority. The network of roads in County Tipperary must be designed and maintained to reduce the consequences of collisions and where possible identified road hazards should be eliminated or mitigated against. Safer behaviours can’t be brought about by enforcement alone. Education is central to influencing safer behaviours by all road users.

Road safety is a shared responsibility and there is a developing culture of road safety amongst road users. Critical to success will be the level of interaction with all road users, so as to continue the marked change in personal behaviours and attitudes and bring about further responsible road user behaviours in order to achieve a safer road environment.

1. Introduction

In addition to their statutory obligations under roads and traffic legislation, local authorities have an important role to play in promoting road safety. Tipperary County Council, in conjunction with its partners, An Garda Síochána (AGS), Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), Road Safety Authority (RSA), Tipperary Fire and Rescue Services and Health Service Executive (HSE), through the National Ambulance Service, has devised a Road Safety Strategy to examine specific local issues relevant to Tipperary.

This, the first Road Safety Strategy for all of Tipperary, covers the period 2018-2020. It offers a strategic direction for road safety in Tipperary in terms of Education, Engineering, Enforcement and Evaluation and reflects the Government Road Safety Strategy 2013-2020. It is designed to ensure a co-ordinated, collaborative and consistent approach to improving road safety for all road users in Tipperary. Its implementation will be dependent on the cooperation of the principal organisations charged with responsibility for road safety.

With this in mind, a countywide Road Safety Working Together Group was established for Tipperary. This working group meets on a regular basis to jointly ensure the development and implementation of road safety initiatives and campaigns targeted at a local level.

The Plan also encourages all members of the community to play an active part in reducing fatalities and injuries on Tipperary’s roads by taking responsibility for their own behaviour as road users.

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2. Mission Statement

To create a greater awareness of road safety through all our stakeholders with the aim of reducing the number, severity and life-changing impact of road collisions, thereby making County Tipperary a safer place for all road users.

3. Profile of County Tipperary

The ‘Premier County’ as Tipperary is known, is an inland, predominately rural county in the Province of Munster covering an area of 4,305 square kilometres and is bounded by Galway, Limerick, Offaly, Kilkenny, Cork, Clare, Laois and Waterford. It is the sixth largest county in Ireland based on size and the twelfth largest based on population. Tipperary is the third largest of Munster’s six counties by size and also the third largest by population. According to Census 2016 the population of Tipperary has risen from 158,754 in 2011 to 159,553 in 2016 (an actual increase of 799 or 0.5%) of which 79,668 were males and 79,885 were females.

Tipperary County Council, which was established in 2014 under the Local Government Reform Act 2014, is the local government authority for the county. It reunified the county which was divided in two for administration purposes between 1898 and 2014. There are five Municipal Districts in Tipperary: Carrick-on-Suir; Cashel/Tipperary; Clonmel; Nenagh; and Templemore/Thurles. The largest towns in County Tipperary are Clonmel, Nenagh and Thurles.

3.1 Transport & Vehicle Ownership in County Tipperary

Road transport dominates in County Tipperary. The M7 motorway crosses the north of the county through Roscrea and Nenagh. The M8 motorway bisects the county from north of Two-Mile-Borris to the County Limerick Border. Both roads are among the busiest roads in Ireland. Other National Roads which traverse the county are the N52 Dundalk to Limerick road which goes through the North-Western part of the county and the town of Nenagh and the N24 Limerick to Waterford road which crosses the southern half of the county.

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Tipperary has a number of railway stations situated on the Dublin-Cork line, Dublin to Limerick and Limerick-Waterford line. The railway lines connect places in Tipperary with Dublin, Cork, Limerick, and Galway. However, the Dublin-Limerick line which passes through Nenagh is sparsely used.

3.2 The Economy of County Tipperary

Tipperary is one of the richest agricultural areas in Ireland. Dairy farming and cattle rearing are the main farming occupations. It is also famous for its horse breeding industry and is the home of Coolmore Stud, the largest thoroughbred breeding operation in the world. Tourism plays a significant role in County Tipperary and some of the primary tourist destinations in the country are located here; The Rock of Cashel, Lough Derg and Cahir Castle among them. Industry is situated around the main towns, in particular Clonmel.

Map 2: The map below illustrates the main roads, towns, Municipal Districts and Garda Divisions in County Tipperary.

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Map 3: This map shows the population of each of Tipperary’s five Municipal Districts according to Census 2016.

3.3 Tipperary’s Road Network

The total length of road in County Tipperary by category is as follows:

Lengths in Municipal Areas (Kilometres)

Municipal Nenagh Templemore/ Clonmel Cashel/ Carrick-on- Total Area Thurles Tipperary Suir Motorway 39 34 25 15 6 119 National 0 0 38 16 11 65 Primary National 52 52 6 21 14 145 Secondary Regional 289 147 146 171 150 903 Local 496 484 347 294 291 1,912 Primary Local 453 367 245 328 295 1,688 Secondary Local 261 232 210 167 120 990 Tertiary Including 1,590 1,316 1,017 1,012 887 5,822 Motorways Excluding 1,551 1,282 992 997 881 5,703 Motorways Percentage 27.2 22.5 17.4 17.5 15.4

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3.4 Licensed Vehicles and Traffic Patterns

There were 59,071 car owning households in 2016 compared to 58,275 in 2011 and the households owning two cars had risen from 20,529 in 2011 to 20,660 in 2016 an increase of 131. However, the households owning three cars had fallen from 4,096 in 2011 to 3,747 in 2016. The number of vehicles under current licence at 31st December 2016 in Tipperary was 100,722.

The following table indicates the means of travel to work, school or college for people in Tipperary aged 5 years and over according to Census 2016

Means of Travel Work School or College Total On foot 5,081 5,886 10,967 Bicycle 517 229 746 Bus, minibus or coach 458 6,308 6,766 Train 311 193 504 Motorcycle or scooter 142 14 156 Car driver 40,908 1,959 42,867 Car passenger 2,678 19,888 22,566 Van 4,772 94 4,866 Other (incl. lorry) 586 11 597 Work mainly at or from home 5,013 42 5,055 Not stated 2,407 1,231 3,638 Total 62,873 35,855 98,728

4. National Context

There has been a strategic approach to road safety in Ireland since the first Government Road Safety Strategy in 1998 and this approach has achieved considerable success under a number of key target areas such as speeding, driving under the influence of alcohol and seat-belt wearing. The result has been a significant reduction in the number of deaths and in 2016 Ireland was the seventh safest country in the EU for road collision fatalities per million population (40). This achievement may be set against an increase in the number of cars during this period of 66%. However, road deaths and serious injuries continue to have a severe impact on society. In the period January - December 2016 there were 174 fatal collisions resulting in 186 fatalities on Irish roads. This represents 19 (+12%) more collisions and 24 (15%) more deaths compared to provisional Garda data for the same period in 2015.

x Of the 186 fatalities, there were 81 Drivers killed, 38 Passengers, 35 Pedestrians, 22 Motorcyclists and 10 Pedal Cyclists. x The highest number of fatalities on our roads occurred among those aged 16-25 (40) and 66+ (44).

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x 138 of those killed were male (74%). x Almost 1 in 4 of the drivers and passengers killed were not wearing a seatbelt (23%). x Thursday (32) and Sunday (37) were the most dangerous days on Irish roads in 2016. x The highest number of fatalities in 2016 occurred between 4pm and 6pm (28) and 10pm and 12am (19).

x In 2016, Dublin (21) and Cork (21) had the highest record of road fatalities. Carlow had no road fatalities and Tipperary had 13.

Figure 1: Number of Deaths in the EU 28 in 2015 per million population

Below: Number of Fatalities per County in 2016

County Fatalities County Fatalities County Fatalities 2016 2016 2016 Carlow 0 Kilkenny 6 Offaly 4 Cavan 3 Laois 3 Roscommon 7 Clare 4 Leitrim 1 Sligo 2 Cork 21 Limerick 17 Tipperary 13 Donegal 10 Longford 3 Waterford 9 Dublin 21 Louth 7 Westmeath 4 Galway 10 Mayo 4 Wexford 4 Kerry 7 Meath 12 Wicklow 2 Kildare 7 Monaghan 5 Total 186

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25

20

15

10

5

0 Cork Sligo Laois Clare Kerry Kerry Mayo Louth Offaly Cavan Dublin Meath Kildare Carlow Leitrim Galway Donegal Limerick Kilkenny Wicklow Wexford Longford Longford Tipperary Waterford Monaghan Westmeath Westmeath Roscommon Figure 2: Fatalities per County in 2016

The following table and chart show the number of fatalities which occurred in the six Munster counties between 2007 and 2014.

Year Cork Clare Kerry Limerick Tipperary Waterford Munster Total 2007 31 12 14 16 18 6 97 2008 24 7 19 18 21 7 96 2009 21 7 12 22 12 3 77 2010 18 4 11 18 6 5 62 2011 27 2 7 15 11 7 69 2012 21 2 7 5 4 3 42 2013 20 2 14 6 12 2 56 2014 18 5 14 10 14 6 67

35

30 2007 25 2008 20 2009 15 2010

10 2011 2012 5 2013 0 2014

Figure 3: Fatalities- Tipperary v Surrounding Counties 2007-2014

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The following table and chart show the number of injuries which occurred in the same counties between 2007 and 2014.

Year Cork Clare Kerry Limerick Tipperary Waterford Munster Total 2007 840 209 394 470 357 240 2510 2008 976 288 387 539 348 225 2763 2009 933 267 345 487 336 243 2611 2010 867 225 254 393 312 211 2262 2011 773 172 249 429 243 189 2055 2012 742 194 239 385 237 201 1998 2013 701 178 250 401 248 195 1973 2014 816 173 347 400 266 165 2167

1000 900 800 2007 700 2008 600 2009 500 2010 400 300 2011 200 2012 100 2013 0 2014

Figure 4: Injuries - Tipperary v Surrounding Counties 2007-2014

Casualty Trends in Tipperary from 2007 to 2014

Year Fatalities Injuries 2007 18 357 2008 21 348 2009 12 336 2010 6 312 2011 11 243 2012 4 237 2013 12 248 2014 14 266

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Tipperary 25

20

15

10

5

0 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

Figure 5: Tipperary Fatalities 2007 to 2014

Tipperary 400

350

300 250

200

150

100 50

0 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

Figure 6: Tipperary Injuries 2007 to 2014

4.1 Government Road Safety Strategy 2013-2020

Ireland’s fourth Government Road Safety Strategy 2013- 2020, called ‘Closing the Gap’ builds on existing road safety interventions, but reframes the way in which road safety is viewed and managed in the community. It requires an acceptance of shared overall responsibilities and accountability. It has the key target of reducing road collision fatalities to 25 per million population or less by 2020 and serious injuries to 61 per million population. This means reducing deaths from 186 in 2011 to 124 or fewer by 2020. The provisional target for the reduction of serious injuries by 30% is from 472 (2011) to 330 or fewer by 2020. The Strategy focuses on the three main areas of intervention of

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education, engineering and enforcement which will continue to underpin the implementation of the actions of the Strategy.

To ensure that the Government Strategy develops in the most efficient manner, a programme of monitoring, research and evaluation will be put in place. A mid-term evaluation of the Strategy was undertaken in 2016 and this provided an opportunity to recalibrate targets and to implement adjustments to the education, engineering and enforcement measures as required.

The Ministerial Committee on Road Safety will continue to oversee the implementation of the Strategy. Ongoing monitoring and outcome measurement will be augmented by the midterm review. The review included an analysis of all socio economic costs and burdens in relation to road safety as well as congestion/disruption costs.

4.2 Safe Systems Approach

A key element of the current Government Road Safety Strategy is that Ireland is now looking to move towards a “Safe Systems” approach to road safety. The ‘Safe Systems’ approach was developed in the Netherlands in the 1990s and has since been applied in best practice countries such as Sweden, Norway and Australia. The Safe Systems approach to road safety builds on existing road safety interventions by adopting a holistic approach to reducing deaths and serious injuries on our roads. The approach focuses on road safety as a responsibility shared and managed by everyone, from national and local Government, to private business and the road-users, working together at every level – national, regional, local and community – to develop effective and innovative road safety initiatives and interventions.

The Safe Systems approach to road safety is built on several key principles:

™ Human Behaviour – no matter how well we are trained and educated about responsible road use, people make mistakes and the road transport system needs to accommodate this; ™ Human Frailty – the finite capacity of the human body to withstand physical force before a serious injury or fatality can be expected is a core system design consideration; ™ Forgiving Systems – roads that we travel on, vehicles we travel in, speeds we travel at and the attitudes of road users to each other needs to be more forgiving of human error.

In addition, the Safe Systems approach has three core components:

™ Safe roads and roadsides – a transport system designed to make a collision survivable through a combination of design and maintenance of roads and roadsides ™ Safe vehicles – the design of vehicles and their safety equipment to include protective systems including electronic stability control, air bags etc ™ Safe Speeds – the speed limit should reflect the road safety risk to the road users.

Through a combination of the core components, the Safe Systems approach aims to design and build a transport system that will protect road users and reduce the number of deaths and serious injuries.

5. Local Context

The Tipperary Road Safety Strategy 2018-2020 reflects the Government strategy in its aims and objectives and is designed to ensure a co-ordinated collaborative and consistent approach for all

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road users. The development and implementation of measures under the headings of Education, Engineering, Enforcement and Evaluation all play a crucial role in terms of road safety. 5.1 The Aims of the Tipperary Road Safety Strategy are:

¾ To create a safer road environment in Tipperary for all road users ¾ To improve co-operation between the agencies and groups represented on the RSWTG ¾ To improve road user behaviour by co-ordinating public education and awareness and to ensure compliance by the public with all relevant legislation

5.2 The Role of the Working Group

The Road Safety Together Working Group coordinated by Tipperary County Council in partnership with Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), Road Safety Authority (RSA), An Garda Síochána, Health Service Executive (HSE) National Ambulance Service and Tipperary Fire & Rescue Services has a significant and pivotal role in:

x Overseeing the development and implementation of the Tipperary Road Safety Strategy x Agreeing actions to be progressed over the lifetime of the plan x Securing funding for the implementation of actions x Ensuring that all agencies/representatives on the Group work together to achieve the objectives of the plan x Recommending road safety policies to the Roads & Transportation Strategic Committee x Inputting into the County Speed Limit Review Process

The Group will meet four times each year.

5.3 Factors which Contribute to Collisions

The following factors are significant contributors to road collisions. The primary ones to be addressed initially are:

x Speed inappropriate for, or inconsistent with, the prevailing circumstances or driving conditions. x Impaired driving through alcohol or drugs x Failure to use or properly use seatbelts and child safety restraints. x Driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs x Unsafe behaviour towards vulnerable road users (pedestrians, motorcyclists, cyclists, young children and older people.) x Unsafe behaviour by vulnerable road users (pedestrians, motorcyclists, cyclists, young children and older people) e.g. not wearing high visibility clothing x Driver fatigue – driving while over-tired and/or unable to remain awake. x Driver distraction e.g. mobile phone use x Medical fitness to drive

Research on fatal collisions nationwide indicates:

x Excessive speed is a contributory factor in 1 in 3 fatal collisions. x Alcohol is a contributory factor in 1 in 3 fatal collisions. x Driver fatigue is estimated to be a factor in 1 in 5 fatal collisions.

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x 1 in 3 of those killed in cars in the last 6 years was not wearing a safety belt or child restraint. x 1 in every 3 children travels unrestrained in a car. x 3 out of 4 people killed on the roads are male. x Young men aged 17 to 34 are consistently over-represented in death and serious injury statistics.

(RSA, 2016. Fatal Collisions 2008 – 2012, Excessive Speed as a Factor)

In addition, the RSA study of fatal collisions that occurred between 2008 and 2012 found that the largest proportions of drivers deemed to be responsible or part responsible for the collision with defective tyres on their vehicles were in Donegal (18.2%), Cork, Kerry and Wexford (9.1% each).

(RSA, 2016. Fatal Collisions 2008 – 2012, Vehicle Factors.)

The Health Research Board (HRB) conducted research on behalf of the RSA which collated information on 2014 road traffic fatalities from closed coronial files (136 of 193 fatalities) in the context of the National Drug-Related Deaths Index (NDRDI). This research found that almost a third (31%) of Road Traffic Collision (RTC) fatalities in 2014 (42/136) had alcohol on toxicology.

¾ 35% of car drivers ¾ 40% of motorcyclists ¾ 28% of pedestrians killed had a positive toxicology for alcohol.

(Source: The Health Research Board National Drug-Related Death Index (NDRDI) report on behalf of the RSA)

5.4 Critical interventions needed to sustain progress

Targets have been set at a national level for further reductions in fatalities and serious injury by 2020. Implementation at both national and local level of the following measures could help reach those targets:

x Reinforce the importance of wearing seatbelts and the use of child restraints x Reinforce the message of the consequences of: o driver fatigue o driver impairment such as alcohol and drug driving o driver distraction, in particular mobile phone use x Highlight the importance of driver and motorcyclist use of appropriate speed for road and conditions x Continue to reduce incidence of Learner Drivers unaccompanied x Empower users to adopt positive behaviours.

These messages are relevant to all drivers but have particular relevance to younger drivers.

(Source: RSA)

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6.0 Road Safety Working Together Group

Road safety is not the sole responsibility of any one person or authority. It involves many different partners and stakeholders working together to reduce casualties. It has to be based on co-operation and co-ordination by all state agencies, the general public and the private/business sector working together at every level; national, regional, local and community. Indeed, in the Government Road Safety Strategy, the Road Safety Authority recognises that the ambitious road safety targets will only be met through the co-operation of all agencies involved in road safety and the shared responsibilities by all users. To achieve this, a Road Safety Working Together Group is to be established in each Local Authority area to co-ordinate multi-agency road safety policy and to implement it at a local level.

6.1 Stakeholders

Tipperary County Council

Tipperary County Council is responsible for the construction and maintenance of public roads in the County in co-operation with Transport Infrastructure Ireland, National Transport Authority and the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport. This involves responsibility for the planning, design, development and maintenance of roads in Tipperary. Key elements of the Tipperary Road Safety Action Plan include safety considerations and ongoing maintenance together with the implementation of a Road Safety Education Programme in conjunction with stakeholders, in order to provide a safe and efficient network to serve the needs of County Tipperary for Business, Industry, Agriculture, Tourism, Education and Community Development.

An Garda Síochána - Garda National Roads Policing Bureau

The main responsibility of Garda Traffic is to significantly reduce the incidence of fatal and serious injuries and improve road safety. An Garda Síochána's Traffic Mission Statement is to “develop a national culture of safe road use”. This includes a number of strategic goals in the area of Traffic and Road Safety in an attempt to significantly reduce the incidence of fatal and serious road injuries and to improve road safety.

The Garda National Roads Policing Bureau (GNRPB) was established in 1997 to formulate policy and oversee traffic policing throughout the state. The Bureau is headed by Assistant Commissioner Michael Finn and is based at Garda Headquarters in the Phoenix Park. Operational Traffic Corps Units based in each Garda Division enforce the policies developed by GNRPB. The two key factors in policy formulation are: x Prioritised enforcement x Traffic management Enforcement is almost entirely a Garda function while traffic management is a shared responsibility between An Garda Síochána and other agencies.

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The Garda Traffic Corps is dedicated to the enforcement of road traffic legislation and also to assisting the free flow of traffic. The first Traffic Corps Unit was established in Dublin in 1953 and was extended nationwide in 1973. The current strength stands at 709 Garda members as of July 2016.

Road Safety Authority

The aim of the Road Safety Authority is to save lives and prevent injuries by reducing the number and severity of collisions on the road. Working to Save Lives is the stated goal adopted by the Board of the RSA. The functions for which the RSA is responsible are set out in legislation. The RSA is organised into five directorates as follows:

¾ Road Safety, Research and Driver Education ¾ Driver Testing and Licensing ¾ Vehicle Standards and Enforcement ¾ Finance and commercial services, Human Resources (HR) and Information and Communications Technology (ICT) ¾ Corporate Strategy Policy and Technology

The RSA researches, educates and protects road users by improving their knowledge, skills and behaviours as they move through life, sets and assesses driving standards, promotes remedial training and licences drivers according to entitlements and sets standards for vehicles, tests against minimum standards and supports compliance amongst commercial vehicle drivers and operators and enforces where necessary.

The Road Safety Authority (RSA) acknowledges the important role played by Tipperary’s Road Safety Committee in the drive to reduce the level of death and injury occurring on our roads. The RSA has given its full support and co-operation to the Tipperary Road Safety Working Group in its implementation of the Road Safety Strategy locally.

Transport Infrastructure Ireland

Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) was established through a merger of the National Roads Authority and the Railway Procurement Agency under the Roads Act 2015, with effect from 1st August 2015. The primary function of TII under the terms of the Roads Act (2015) is ‘to secure the provision of a safe and efficient network of national roads’. TII’s mission statement is to contribute to improving people’s quality of life and to economic competitiveness by developing, maintaining and operating the national road network in a safe, cost effective and sustainable manner. TII also has a Regional Road Safety Engineer who liaises with Tipperary County Council, as well as other counties in the region, regarding issues of road safety on national roads.

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Health Service Executive (HSE)

The Health Service Executive (HSE) is responsible for providing health and personal social services for everyone living in the Republic of Ireland.

The HSE recognises that it has a key role to play in Road Safety. Road Traffic Collisions are a significant social problem resulting in death, injury and long term disability which impacts the health system as well as society as a whole. The Irish Health Service deals with the many health related outcomes of road crashes and collisions from the Ambulance Service, A&E Services, hospital services, rehabilitation, longer term and community care. The Health Service deals with the trauma, tragedy and results of crashes and collisions on our roads on a daily basis. The HSE fully supports and endorses the aims and objectives of the National Road Safety Strategy 2013-2020.

Tipperary Fire & Rescue Service

Tipperary Fire & Rescue Service maintains round the clock emergency cover to protect life and property. There are twelve fire stations in the county based at: ™ Borrisokane ™ Nenagh ™ Cahir ™ Newport ™ Carrick-on-Suir ™ Roscrea ™ Cashel ™ Templemore ™ Clonmel ™ Thurles ™ Cloughjordan ™ Tipperary Town

The fire fighters based at these stations undergo continuous training to ensure that the service they provide is of the highest possible standard. In addition, fire officers are available to give fire safety advice and to ensure that standards are properly maintained to ensure public safety. On average the fire service attends over 1500 incidents per year. The fire service headquarters is based at Limerick Road, Nenagh. These offices administer all items relating to the operational fire service, fire safety, building control, emergency planning and petroleum licensing.

6. The Four Pillars or The Four E’s of Road Safety

Education - raising awareness of road safety by imparting knowledge and developing an understanding of the risks with a view to changing attitudes and behaviour at individual, community and organisational levels.

The core element of road safety awareness happens in schools – the stakeholder organisations undertake many initiatives and programmes for road safety education at all levels of schools across the county, from pre-school to third level and in the community.

Engineering - making the road network safer and more forgiving of inevitable errors by road users. Tipperary County Council with support from Transport Infrastructure Ireland, Department of

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Transport, Tourism and Sport and the National Transport Authority, is responsible for engineering issues on Tipperary roads, including annual road works programmes, road safety audits, identifying and implementing low cost safety measures, speed limit reviews, driver feedback signs and traffic management.

Enforcement - visible and appropriate enforcement acting as a deterrent and increasing compliance with road traffic legislation. An Garda Síochána is responsible for enforcement of the road traffic legislation. This includes setting up checkpoints for the purpose of carrying out of Mandatory Alcohol Tests (MAT), checks for speeding, seatbelt wearing and other violations of traffic offences.

Evaluation - monitoring of actions and seeking sustainable reduction in road deaths and serious injury by constant research into the efficacy of actions undertaken. The Road Safety Authority continues to carry out surveys and evaluations in an effort to ascertain the value and quality of certain campaigns and road behaviour.

Focusing on these four areas has worked well over the period of previous Government road safety strategies and facilitates the identification of intervention measures and the agencies responsible for carrying them out. The measures under these headings are informed by the challenges identified in the Strategy and are underpinned by a programme of research, monitoring and evaluation.

Enabling or persuading people to change their behaviour and demonstrate personal responsibility in relation to road safety is essential for the success of the strategy. The four Es of education, engineering, enforcement and evaluation have a large part to play in this – through these measures, the general public will come to perceive that road safety is consistent with his or her core values and it is the norm in terms of attitude and behaviour.

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7. Action Plan

8.1 Education

Action Project Lead Dept or Support Dept or Action Timeframe Target No. Agency Agency 1. Pre-school RSA Tipperary County Promote the use of Annually 1 Session Childcare Simon and Friends Committee (TCCC) Education Programme 2. Primary School RSA & TCC TCC Deliver road safety Annually 30 Primary schools (Tipperary County talks to primary Council) schools, promoting the use of road safety programmes such as Be Safe, Let’s Go, Seatbelt Sherriff, Hi Glo Silver and Safe Cross Code 3. Tipperary Sports Cycle Ireland Provide Safe Cycle Annually 20 schools per year Partnership/TCC Training to fifth and sixth class 4. TCC Provision of adult Ongoing Continue to provide School Warden school warden service Service at identified schools and have wardens trained as prescribed.

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Action Project Lead Dept or Support Dept or Action Timeframe Target No. Agency Agency 5. TCC Schools Road Safety Poster Annually 3rd class in all primary Competition schools in 1 M.D. per year 6. AGS Deliver Personal One lecture in each Safety Lecture of the 170 primary which includes schools in the road & traffic county safety 7. RSA TCC Deliver road safety Annually 10 Schools Post Primary School talk to secondary schools, promoting *RSA & AGS to liaise the programmes regarding list of ‘Road Safety schools which it is Matters’, ‘Your intended to visit to Road to Safety’ allow maximum and ‘Wrecked’ to exposure of Road schools Safety Initiatives. 8. RSA TCC Deliver in-service Annually 3 new schools to training on the undertake junior cycle and programme each transition year year programmes in schools 9. Linked with next item AGS TCC Deliver transition Annually Deliver to Transition year programme “It Year students in 2 Won’t Happen to schools per year Me”

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Action Project Lead Dept or Support Dept or Action Timeframe Target No. Agency Agency 10. Linked with above AGS Road Safety Talk delivered by Twice per year members of the capturing 15 schools Divisional Traffic Corps 11. Third Level RSA/AGS TCC Deliver road safety Annually 1 session talks to third level students 12. Companies RSA TCC Deliver road safety Annually 5 Sessions talks to companies including roll over and RSA shuttle 13 Community RSA Voluntary groups Protecting our Annually 4 sessions community – a call to action

Mobility Matters – road safety which targets the elderly

14 Road Safety Promotion RSA/AGS TCC Implement public Annually Utilise national/local awareness media to increase campaigns which public awareness of target the main road safety issues. casual factors for collisions, deaths and serious injuries for all road users but in particular the high risk groups.

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Action Project Lead Dept or Support Dept or Action Timeframe Target No. Agency Agency 15. RSA TCC/AGS High visibility Ongoing Distribute high materials visibility and road safety resources as required/planned and in conjunction with other media campaigns.

16. Road Safety Interactive RSA AGS/TCC ‘Check it Fits’ road Annually 3 locations in Resources show Tipperary each year

17. RSA TCC Visit primary schools Annually 2 Primary Schools with ‘Street Smart’ programme 18. RSA AGS/TCC Road Safety Annually 2 locations Interactive Shuttle & Roll-over Simulator 19. Road Safety Week RSA AGS/TCC Organise a road Annually All road users safety week with a series of local and national events including ‘Beep Beep Day’ for preschools.

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8.2 Engineering

Action Project Lead Dept or Agency Support Dept Action Timeframe Target No. or Agency

20. Abnormal Load TCC/AGS Assess applications Ongoing All applications to be Permits and apply conditions assessed in a timely as appropriate manner

21. Hedge Cutting TCC Landowners/ Investigate Ongoing Issue Notices in occupiers of complaints regarding response to complaints land hedges and issue and follow through to notification to ensure compliance. landowners/occupiers where hedges become a road safety issue for users in accordance with Section 70 of the Roads Act 1993.

22. Public Lighting TCC ESB/AUS Annual programme of Ongoing Complete annual new lights and LED programme of works upgrade/retrofit

23. Winter Maintenance TCC TII Monitor and Ongoing Implement Winter undertake salting as Service Plan and required on routes publish Plan on TCC identified in the website. Winter Service Plan

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Action Project Lead Dept or Agency Support Dept Action Timeframe Target No. or Agency 24. Fleet Management TCC Maintain TCC fleet so Ongoing Ensure all vehicle that all vehicles are inspections are safe and fit for recorded and are in purpose accordance with relevant legislation.

Arrange independent audits and gate checks of vehicles and the fleet management system.

25. Establishment of AGS TCC Partnership between Ongoing 1 meeting at Collision Prevention District Engineers and local/district level per Programmes (CPP’s) in AGS in reviewing quarter Garda Districts collision prone zones and actively contributing to a reduction of road traffic collisions at a local level.

26. Installation of TCC Consider the Ongoing Complete annual footpaths and incorporation of footpath programme development of cycle footpaths, cycle ways subject to funding. ways and green ways and green ways in new road designs, Progress NTA funded especially in urban projects involving cycle locations. Seek ways and greenways additional funding for where appropriate. footpaths in poor condition.

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Action Project Lead Dept or Agency Support Dept Action Timeframe Target No. or Agency

27. Reduce the hazard of TCC TII/DTTAS Carry out annual Ongoing Complete annual poor drainage on roads programme of drainage programme. leading to surface maintenance Issue Notices as water flowing on or drainage works. Issue appropriate. Take causing damage to Section 76 Notices planning enforcement road surfaces. under the Roads Act, measures as necessary. 1993 where water is deemed to be flowing onto the road. Follow up on planning conditions relating to surface water and entrances.

28. Identify, prioritise and TCC DTTAS Based on an Annually Complete locations implement low cost assessment of identified in Road safety measures for collision data, Works Programme non national roads prioritise and submit each year. the collision prone locations on non national roads for inclusion in the national low cost safety programme.

29. Complete LA16 forms TCC/AGS LA16 forms to be As required Within one month following fatal completed and following fatality. collisions. submitted to TII as soon as possible following fatal

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Action Project Lead Dept or Agency Support Dept Action Timeframe Target No. or Agency collision

30. Road Works TCC TII/DTTAS Publish annual road Annually 1 programme per year Programme works programme subject to funding identifying road improvements being carried out 31. Road Safety TII TCC Systematic Ongoing Starting in 2018 TCC Inspections on inspections of all will begin addressing National Routes in National Routes to identified hazards accordance with HD17 identify existing based on a prioritised (AM-STY-06044) of the issues relating to road ranking for treatment. DMRB and the EU Safety. Directive on Road Recommendations to Safety Infrastructure be implemented by Management. TCC & MMARC on the County National Road network. 32. Identify High Collision TII TCC, MMaRC TII provides annual Annually & ongoing All proposed schemes Locations on the report to Local implemented where National road network, Authority of identified engineering measures Routes in accordance high collision deemed appropriate. with HD15 (GE-STY- locations. Tipperary 01022) of the DMRB County Council & and the EU Directive Road Operators put on Road Safety forward schemes with Infrastructure feasible engineering Management. solution for funding to TII. Local Authority/Road Operator implement

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Action Project Lead Dept or Agency Support Dept Action Timeframe Target No. or Agency funded schemes.

33. Road Safety Audit TCC TII Road Safety audits to Ongoing 100% of all schemes (For National Roads in be undertaken on all that meet the audit accordance with HD19 applicable DoTTaS requirement. (GE-STY-01024) of the funded road schemes DMRB and the EU (Local, Regional & Directive on Road National) that affect Safety Infrastructure the layout or Management.) management of the road. 34. Implement HD16 (CC- TCC TII Undertake periodic Varies depending on Ensure all relevant road STY-04002) inspection inspections of the timeframe of the works are inspected requirements for temporary safety road works. periodically and temporary safety measures at registered on the TII measures at road roadwork sites on all website works in accordance projects sanctioned with the EU Directive and/or procured by on Road Safety local authorities and Infrastructure register all relevant Management. road works on the TII website.

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8.3 Enforcement

Action Project Lead Dept or Support Dept or Action Timeframe Target No. Agency Agency AGS Increased presence Quarter 1 Greater visibility in 35. (a) High Visibility Policing on the Road each District Network. 35. (b) Road Traffic Legislation AGS Increased Ongoing Decrease in fatal Enforcement enforcement of and serious Road Traffic and accidents in each Road Safety District Legislation 36. Mandatory Intoxication AGS Enforcement of Ongoing Enhance the Testing (MITS) legislation in relation Enforcement of all to driving while Drink/Drug Driving intoxicated through Legislation drink and/or drugs 37. Commercial Vehicle Checks AGS RSA Continue individual Ongoing Greater Road Safety and joint Road compliance Operations with the RSA targeting abnormal loads and commercial and heavy goods vehicles safety checks 38. Life Saver Offences AGS Compliance with and Ongoing Continued Enforcement of engagement with Speed/Seat community groups Belts/Mobile Phone and local media to Legislation and promote Safe Regulations Driving Practices 39. Inter-Agency Checkpoints AGS - RSA To participate in Ongoing At least two per - Department of Inter-Agency quarter

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Action Project Lead Dept or Support Dept or Action Timeframe Target No. Agency Agency Social Protection Checkpoints and - Revenue participate in Commissioners targeted Multi- - Customs Agency Road Safety Operations throughout the Tipperary Division 40. Collision Prone Zones AGS - Tipperary County To monitor and Quarterly Collision Prone Council update the list of Zones are targeted - TII Collision prone with increased level locations and to of visibility. Zones ensure that identified are appropriate policing targeted with Go- attention is paid to Safe technology to those areas. improve compliance with speed limits. 41. Media Awareness AGS - Tipperary County To develop and Monthly Increased Public Council utilise Local Media Awareness of Road - RSA including Social and Safety Digital forms to raise awareness of National and Local Road Safety Initiatives

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8.4 Evaluation

Action Project Lead Dept or Support Dept or Action Timeframe Target No. Agency Agency 42. Monitor the implementation TCC RSWTG Place as an item on Ongoing 3 meetings per of the Tipperary Safety the Agenda for each annum Strategy meeting of the Road Safety Working Together Group 43. Monitor Action Plan TCC RSWTG Provide report Annually Annual report annually on progress of plan

44. Identify areas where actions TCC RSWTG Provide report Annually Annual report have not been met identifying the reasons why actions/targets have not been met. Offer potential solutions or alternatives to implement into the Strategy. 45. Capture the number and type TCC AGS/RSA Provide report on Annually Annual report of community consultations, number and type of community participations and community events the different community and the number of channels used in the area of people who Road Safety education. participated in the events. 46. Develop feedback form for TCC AGS/RSA Provide feedback After each event Annual report joint road safety events forms to participants for completion. Evaluate comments

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Action Project Lead Dept or Support Dept or Action Timeframe Target No. Agency Agency to see how events can be improved on. 47. Complete a Post Plan Review TCC RSWTG Provide a report after Quarter 1, 2021 Quarter 1, 2021 the expiry of the Plan and make recommendations for the next Road Safety Strategy 48. In order to meet the target of All Implementation of End 2020 Fatalities 4 25 fatalities and 61 serious Education, Serious Injuries 10 injuries per million population Engineering and or less by 2020 as set out in Enforcement Actions the Government Road Safety Strategy 2013-2020, or 4 fatalities and 10 serious injuries per year in Co. Tipperary by 2020, a reduction of 69% in fatalities will be required.

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8. Summary

Tipperary County Council, in conjunction with its partners, the Road Safety Authority, Transport Infrastructure Ireland, An Garda Síochána, Tipperary Fire and Rescue and The HSE/National Ambulance Service has adopted a Strategy for road safety based on what is known as the Four E’s; Education, Enforcement, Engineering and Evaluation. This requires a co-ordinated approach between all the stakeholders to provide a focus on collision and casualty reduction in the county and try to improve overall safety levels within our communities and to minimise loss and disruption to society.

Empowerment through the Four E’s is extremely important as it underpins the cultural shift, which will be required to effectively achieve road safety within the county. This means that all of us as road users, in all of our various roles within our communities, such as family members, education providers, community leaders, volunteers, care givers and employees have to take personal responsibility for both our own safety and the safety of others. Empowerment is the overarching element of this Strategy and forms the fundamental foundation on which the other elements will be achieved.

The effectiveness of a particular service refers to the extent to which it achieves its objectives. It is vital that the Road Safety Strategy, as set out in this Plan, be monitored to establish its effectiveness and allow changes to be made, if required, at the end of each year. Analysis of targets is imperative in guiding the delivery of the Road Safety Strategy. The stakeholders will continually monitor the progress of this Strategy and prepare an annual report.

It is the sincere hope of all the stakeholders that the continued focus on road safety in County Tipperary as part of this Road Safety Strategy will contribute further to collision and casualty reduction in the County over the lifetime of the Strategy.

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9. List of Acronyms

AGS An Garda Síochána

DTTAS Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport

GNRPB Garda National Roads Policing Bureau

HRB Health Research Board

HSE Health Service Executive

M.D. Municipal District

MITS Mandatory Intoxication Testing

NDRDI National Drug Related Deaths Index

RSA Road Safety Authority

RTC Road Traffic Collision

RSWTG Road Safety Working Together Group

TCC Tipperary County Council

TCCC Tipperary County Childcare Committee

TII Transport Infrastructure Ireland

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