Roaming deer are creating increasing danger on Irish roads, especially in rural areas. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae criticised the Road Safety Authority for failing to run meaningful national awareness campaigns about deer strikes and animal-related road collisions. RSA officials acknowledged that deer pose a danger but confirmed they had not sought meetings with Government or Ministers specifically about the issue. Healy-Rae raised concerns about under-reporting of deer-related crashes and near misses. Healy-Rae cited parliamentary figures showing the RSA spent over €26 million on media campaigns from 2019 to 2024, while less than €40,000 was spent on animal-related road safety campaigns. He argued that families and working people are being affected by frequent collisions in counties such as Kerry.
"Anybody living in rural Ireland knows the danger roaming deer pose on our roads. In parts of Kerry there are collisions and near misses happening constantly, yet the RSA spends millions and millions of taxpayers' money every year on glossy advertising campaigns while barely mentioning deer at all."
"The RSA itself admitted before the committee that deer are causing accidents. Yet they have had no engagement with Government or Ministers on the issue and have spent virtually nothing on raising public awareness around it."
"Deputy Healy-Rae also raised serious concerns around what he believes is widespread under-reporting of deer-related crashes and near misses."
"RSA officials acknowledged that deer "pose a danger" on Irish roads and confirmed that they had not sought meetings with Government or Ministers specifically regarding the issue."
Read at Irish Independent
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]