The year 2008 will be remembered for many things, one of the worst things however is the unacceptably high number of road deaths. We all know the statistic – 2008 was equal to 1998 with 17 road deaths, with both years being the highest in the past 10 years. That figure amounts to 26.6 road deaths per 100,000. Meanwhile road deaths in other jurisdictions are much lower. In 2007 the US had 13.6 road deaths per 100,000 in population and the UK had 4.8 deaths per 100,000 in population. In 2008 the US had the lowest number of road deaths since Lyndon Johnson was President.

In October, 2004 Mr Jamahl Simmons was the United Bermuda Party's spokesman on Transport and is quoted as saying: "How many times has Dr. Brown promised that they were going to begin addressing road safety?

"Whenever there has been a spate of tragic road deaths the Minister has come out and promised he would begin introducing initiatives to address the problem. Yet still the public is forced to wait while yet another promise goes unfulfilled."

More recently, the Minister for Public Safety, Lt. Col. Sen. David Burch is quoted as saying: "To be clear, this Government considers road safety a priority and will do all that it can to ensure that the rules of our roads are upheld."

The United Bermuda Party too believes that road safety is a priority and has joined others to campaign for improved road safety. As Shadow Minister for Transport I will lobby for the following in 2009:

¦ Installation on our roads of a new generation of "cats-eye" road reflectors which offer a significant boost in night-time and/or poor weather visibility, compared with the traditional 'cats-eye' road reflectors, or lines painted down the sides of roads. The new generation of cats-eye studs are now in use in approximately 120 locations across the UK, in the Netherlands, France, Australia and in South Africa. Road safety authorities have reported reductions in night time accidents of well over 70% since the installation of the new road studs.

¦ Introducing more skid resistant and aggregate road surfacing. This has been shown to reduce accidents other jurisdictions by well in excess of 50 percent.

¦ Introducing road safety cameras (speed cameras) which has shown in many jurisdictions anywhere from a 12 percent to 40 percent reduction in collisions involving death or serious injury and at static camera sites, the number of those killed or seriously injured in collisions fell by a staggering 79 percent. The Minister for Transport believes in their power to reduce road fatalities. Premier Dr Ewart Brown was quoted as saying in July 2006 that he had asked his Cabinet colleague Randy Horton, then Minister for Public Safety, "to expedite the installation of the speed cameras".

¦ "Providing the Bermuda Police Service with the legal basis for implementing mandatory alcohol testing checkpoints with the use of portable breathalyzers. It has been reported by CADA that 70 percent of road deaths in Bermuda are alcohol and drug related.

Figures released by police forces in 2007 in the UK showed that whilst the number of breath tests rose in 2006 there was a dramatic fall in not only positive breath tests but also the number of motorists failing "fit to drive" tests - designed to detect motorists under the influence of drugs - also dropped. This is evidence that random testing will work.

¦ Increase road signage island-wide to remind road users of the speed limit which has shown to reduce speed in the UK by upwards of 30 percent.

¦ Introduction of traffic calming measures such as road humps. In Hull, UK a reduction in injury accidents of approximately 56% was found after a series of measures were implemented. Fatal injuries were reduced by 90 percent and child casualties by 70 percent.

¦ Introduce a ban on the use of cell phones without a hands free kit whilst driving. The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents concluded that use of a mobile phone adversely affects driver performance, especially in terms of reaction times and maintenance of lane position.

¦ Raise the manpower levels of the traffic division of the Bermuda Police service to insure that they can perform their duties effectively - higher police presence reduces accidents.

I urge our Premier, Dr. Brown, who has been Minister for Transport for the past ten years to work with the Minister for Public Safety, to implement quickly the proposals I and others have outlined. It is truly a matter of life and death.

United Bermuda Party Senator Michael M. Fahy JP is Shadow Minister for Transport