Irish seatbelt use remains poor
26 July 2002: Seatbelt usage by all motorists in Ireland is low by European standards, largely because of lack of enforcement, safety experts believe. Gardai carry out ‘campaigns’ from time to time, but it seems there’s no ongoing effort to enforce the regulations here, which require all car occupants to be ‘belted up’.
Seatbelt usage here is just over 50 per cent, while in the UK it is around 90 per cent, according to recent research reported by Semperit Ireland in a road safety presentation.
Meanwhile, a recent US study of seatbelt use by teenagers has shown that states with primary seatbelt laws requiring ‘buckle up’ have a higher rate of teenage usage.
The study was released by the Air Bag & Seat Belt Safety Campaign of the US National Safety Council. The 18 states with primary seat belt use laws allow law enforcement officers to stop and ticket motorists based solely on an observed seat belt violation.
The study found that teenage drivers in ‘secondary’ seatbelt regulation states were far less likely to be buckled up in fatal crashes. Belt use was 47 percent among fatally injured 16- to 19-year-old drivers in states with primary laws, compared to 30 percent in states with secondary laws.
July 2002