Appeal for extra vigilance on the roads as winter time begins

With clocks due to go back this weekend, signalling the return to winter and darker evenings, the Donegal Road Safety Working Group is appealing to all road users especially pedestrians and cyclists to stay safe and be seen.

So far in 2017, 124 people have lost their lives on our roads, a decrease of 32 on the same period in 2016, 5 people have died in Donegal and many more have been seriously injured in road traffic collisions in Ireland.

Brian O’Donnell, Road Safety Officer says “We all need to play our part in road safety. Road users must accept responsibility, think about their actions on the road and modify their driving to cope with changeable weather conditions. As the evenings get darker, we need to stress how important it is to Be Safe and Be Seen on the road.”

Road users can struggle to adapt to a combination of changing factors such as, poor weather conditions, driving in the dark for longer periods and pedestrians not wearing reflective or bright clothing.

Motorists are urged to check and ensure that their vehicles are fit for winter. Tyres must be in good condition and meet the legal requirements. A defective tyre could lead to a serious accident.

All lights must be clean, working and correctly adjusted. Remember to use dipped headlights when driving in poor weather. Our advice is that if your vehicle wipers are on, so should your dipped headlights. If you have fog lights, use them when the weather is foggy, but remember it is illegal to use these lights at other times.

Listen to the weather and travel advice on the news and if needs be, leave extra time to ensure that you arrive safely.

Always be seen by wearing reflective clothing if out walking or cycling. Motorists need to make an extra effort to look out for children, pedestrians and cyclists and similarly pedestrians and cyclists need to stay safe and always be seen.

Brian also appeals to motorists to use dipped headlights at all times, wear your seatbelt, slow down, never use a mobile phone while driving and never drive after drinking or taking drugs.