Minister issues warning to speeding NI motorists: There is ‘no need to speed’
Infrastructure Minister Nichola Mallon has urged drivers and riders to reduce their speed ahead of Road Safety Week which gets under way today in Northern Ireland.
Warning that “excessive speed for the conditions” is one of the main causes of people being killed or seriously injured on our roads, the minister spelt out a message of ‘No Need to Speed’.
“The Department for Infrastructure is collaborating with road safety partners in the emergency services to remind drivers and riders that there is ‘No Need to Speed’.
“We must challenge, and disrupt attitudes of people who think that it is safe to speed. No one can foresee the unexpected. Whatever the circumstances of any collision, whether on a rural or urban road, speeding always makes the consequences worse.
“We all must be mindful that speed limits are set as an absolute maximum and that the weather and conditions need to be taken into consideration when driving on any road. Speed does not need to be high to kill or seriously injure.
“Over the last five years, 56 people have lost their lives here due to ‘excessive speed having regard to the conditions’. Many, many more have been seriously injured.
“Every 1mph reduction in average speeds causes, on average, a 5% reduction in collisions.