Annual Report 2009(PDF) - Road Safety Authority

Chief Executive’s Statement
This is the third annual report of
the Road Safety Authority.
The work of the RSA for the calendar year 2009 is outlined
along with details of its stewardship of the funding and
resources which have been provided by Government.
2009 was a very busy year for the RSA across all the main
sections of the organisation.
In Driver Testing & Licensing we maintained a national
average waiting time of 10 weeks for a driving test and in
many locations this was exceeded. A national consultation
process was launched around our plans to reform the way our
learner drives are taught to drive.
In the Vehicle Standards & Enforcement section we increased
the amount of enforcement, particularly in relation to drivers’
hours, to its highest ever levels. We also embarked on a major
campaign to educate operators and drivers of their legal and
safety obligations on the roads.
Despite cuts in funding the Road Safety, Driver Education and
Research Directorate put in place a series of mass media
campaigns to ensure that the public were road safety
conscious every time they embarked on a journey. In addition
we launched a number of new road safety educational
programmes and resources that will now be delivered in
schools, colleges and within the community.
Most importantly of all the biggest success in 2009 was the
reduction in road deaths and the achievement of the
Government Road Safety target three years ahead of schedule.
There will be those who say we have done enough and there
is no need to introduce new road safety measures.
I have said it before, and it’s worth repeating again, the
challenge now is to sustain the drop in road deaths, and try to
reduce it further. It can be done, other countries have done
so.
As such the RSA will forge ahead with the other measures that
have yet to be implemented in the road safety strategy.
I take this opportunity of expressing to the Chairman and
Board my thanks for their leadership and guidance
throughout the year. In particular I would like to thank the
dedication of the staff in the RSA who have worked through a
difficult year but never once lost focus of our task, our
organisational motto of – ‘working to save lives’.
I would also like to thank each and every road user. What has
happened on our roads in the last decade is remarkable and
this is down to your willingness to change. To change
attitudes and behaviour for the better. For this I thank you.
Special thanks must go to the media, the length and breath of
the country. Without your support we simply would not be
able to deliver our life saving messages.
Thanks must also go to our partners who have joined with us,
or contributed financially to our many campaigns in 2009.
Your support is greatly appreciated, and more importantly it
has been effective.
In my role as accounting officer I take responsibility for the
proper use of ¤ 32.834 million of Exchequer funds provided to
the Authority. The financial accounts of the RSA are detailed
at the end of this report.
Noel Brett Chief Executive Officer RSA
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