Road deaths almost double in Mayo

‘WE HAVE TO WORK TO DECREASE NUMBERS’ ?Noel Gibbons, Road Safety Officer, Mayo County Council.

Annus Horribilis as Mayo road deaths almost double


Anton McNulty

THE Road Safety Officer with Mayo County Council has said ‘alarm bells are ringing’ after road deaths in the county almost doubled in the last year.
The year 2014 was an ‘annus horribilis’ for road safety campaigners in Mayo, with the tragic death of Kilmaine pensioner Michael Paul Murphy bringing the number of deaths on Mayo’s roads to eleven. The figure is shocking when compared to the previous year, when six people died on the county’s roads.
The increase in road deaths is a significant step in the wrong direction for road safety campaigners who had seen a significant drop in deaths over the last number of years. In 2012, there were seven deaths on the road and it fell further in 2013 when six people lost their lives. This year’s figures match the number of deaths for 2011 while eight died in 2010.
Noel Gibbons, Mayo County Council’s Road Safety Officer said the increase in deaths was disappointing.
“It is a huge increase on last year, and it is disheartening to see the figures rise again,” he told The Mayo News. “Eleven deaths is a lot, and the alarm bells are ringing for us now, because it was not expected. We definitely hoped for a further decrease at the start of the year. We will have to break down the figures and analyse [where the deaths occurred] and we will have to work to decrease that number for next year.”
Mr Murphy (73) of Kilkerran, Kilmaine, died after he was hit by a car shortly after 8pm on Sunday evening, December 21, while walking along a local road. He was rushed to Mayo General Hospital, but despite emergency care died in the early hours of December 22.
The Mayo News understands that he was close to his home and was struck by a passing car after he got out of his own car. The female driver, who was in her 20s, was uninjured in the accident.
The tragic accident occurred along a narrow local road located half way between Kilmaine and Cross near the Gortjordan church. The local community was shocked at the news of the death of Mr Murphy, who himself suffered the loss of his brother in England the week before.
Mr Murphy was the second pedestrian to die on Mayo roads in December following the tragic death of Tom Lally of Lisduff, Claremorris, when he was struck by car while crossing the N17.

Vulnerable groups
Mr Gibbons said he was concerned by the number of pedestrians and cyclists killed both in Mayo and nationally and that this was an area to be targeted in the coming year.
“We will have to look at vulnerable groups like pedestrians and cyclists because nationally the number of deaths in these groups are high. We will look to target pedestrians and encourage them to wear hi-vis clothing when walking no matter what the distance.”
Mr Gibbons added he would like to see the law changed to allow a 1.5 metre minimum passing distance for motorists overtaking cyclists. He says the proposal has proved successful in countries where it is law, and he believes it will make motorist more aware of cyclists if it is enshrined.