'Silence is the worst thing you can hear at a collision,' says Waterford Superintendent
Those in attendance at the meeting were encouraged to add specific road safety suggestions to the boxes.
The N25 has to change, but so do drivers.
That is according to Garda Superintendent Gavin Hegarty, who was speaking at last week’s public meeting on the N25 safety measures.
Supt Hegarty said that he has attended every collision in his policing area since he arrived and said it is “not a pleasant place to be.”
“Silence is the worst thing you can hear at a traffic collision. We prefer to hear screaming and roaring because when you hear silence, something serious has happened.
“That phone call or that knock on the door is the hardest you will ever have to make.
"We get to walk away from it, but you never do, and for that, we are really sorry, and you have our condolences, and we will do everything we can, but it starts with ye lads. It starts with everyone in this room,” said Supt Hegarty.
The Garda Superintendent is responsible for Waterford City and parts of South Kilkenny.
He said his gardaí regularly seize cars from unaccompanied learners, arrest drink and drug drivers, and driving while on mobile phones is also common.
“Would any of ye get in a plane with an untested pilot, and we are leaving our young people out on the roads driving untested, and we think it’s okay.
"We are getting into cars with drink and drugs on board, and we think it’s okay. We are speeding, and we know that speeding kills,” said Supt Hegarty.
The superintendent made his comments during the open Q&A part of the meeting.
One member of the audience pointed out that he sees the bad behaviour but the gardaí do not police the “fatality stretch.” He also said that he disliked hearing the phrase “frustrated driver” and that dangerous drivers should be labelled as such.
Garda Hegarty responded: "Absolutely! I have a finite resource, and I try to spread that resource to as many places as possible. I also have a responsibility to my members.
“I also have to keep my members safe. I have to put them in locations where their lives are not in danger because I don’t want to go to one of their funerals either."
And he said the gardaí are catching dangerous drivers.
“Believe me, all you have to do is go down to Waterford courthouse Monday to Friday.
"We have a court sitting there every day. It’s not empty.
"We have some very wealthy solicitors in Waterford City on the back of the work An Garda Siochana are doing, and you have my commitment that we will continue to do that work,” said Supt Hegarty.
During the Q&A session, a family member of a woman who died in January on the road told those gathered she had lobbied the Council, TDs and TII for more safety measures.
She said the TII say the Council are responsible, while the Council say it is the TII who needs to act.
“Nothing has been done. The left-hand turn is the only thing that has been done.
"You have the same question again to reduce the speed limit. We just want to see something done.
"All the reports, all the analysis, all the … you know, that’s paperwork. We just want to see something done,” said the audience member.
Other members of the audience asked questions and told their own stories.
One man said he had been driving on the N25 since 1962.
He said speed is the biggest issue but that a new road should not take this long to build.
Another member of the audience described having to direct traffic away from her road during an accident so that drivers don’t end up back on the N25.
A bus driver from the area spoke about having to change his route in the morning because he only frustrates other motorists.
Now he uses the backroads “with a big bus, which is actually safer.”
