A driving instructor and an ambulance driver offer their opinions on the standards of Irish car drivers.
Advocates for changes to the licencing of drivers give their views on what needs to change to make the roads safer for everyone. Driving Instructor John Walsh says drivers do not understand the rules of the road and this is especially true of provisional licence holders.
Nine out of ten people who come into us every day of the week do not understand the rules of the road.
John Walsh is also critical of the skills of motorcyclists with twice as many killed in accidents as compared to car drivers every year. In a recent survey carried out by Driving Instructors,
68% of motorcyclists did not know that they had to undergo a driving test.
If a driver fails the driving test, they can still drive home immediately afterwards. John Walsh also believes there is a need for legislation to licence and regulate driving schools.
Ambulance driver Noel O'Connor sees first hand the results of inexperienced drivers on our roads every day.
This is due mainly to bad driving on our roads.
He is also critical of the fact that a learner driver is allowed to drive completely alone without any professional tuition or instruction.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 4 March 1983.
