Hauliers have called for teenagers to be given better education about road safety in schools.  

Over the past five-years, one-quarter of drivers involved in road death crashes were driving for work.

According to RSA research, HGVs were involved in 11% of fatal collisions and Irish Road Haulage Association spokesperson Eugene Drennan said that is likely because HGV drivers are on the roads more often than the average motorist. 

“The statistic in the first place is one of sorrow,” he said. 

“The statistic about people who work, I think that would be expected because these are the people who do the most miles, are on all of the roads all over the country and in all sorts of conditions.” 

Main image is a file photo of Gardaí at the scene of a road crash. Image: Sasko Lazarov/RollingNews

Mr Drennan also said Irish roads were not built with HGVs in mind. 

“They’re very big vehicles trying to negotiate very narrow roads,” he said. 

“I would like to give the statistic a much deeper look before I give you a definitive answer because in a number of cases, they may have been involved where they are not the cause of reason for the accident.” 

So far in 2024, 159 people have died on Irish roads - 16 fewer than in the same period last year.

Main image shows a member of An Garda Siochana placing flowers near the scene of a crash. Picture by: Sasko Lazarov / © RollingNews.ie