ULSTER GAA is backing a major road safety campaign after a significant increase in deaths last year.
A total of 71 people died on Northern Ireland roads in 2023, up from 55 and 50 in the previous two years.
This year, a further 15 people have also died following crashes.
The Share the Road to Zero campaign is also supported by the Northern Ireland Football League, the PSNI as well as the Northern Ireland Ambulance and Fire Services.
Infrastructure Minister John O’Dowd said Ulster GAA could play a key role in encouraging more people to change their behaviours on the road.
“Our rising road deaths are an area of deep concern and the GAA family is among those deeply affected by these losses,” he said.
“Families, friends and communities are left devastated as too many people, including many young lives, are lost on our roads.
“This campaign is about us all playing a part in reducing road deaths by taking personal responsibility to be the best road user we can be.”
He added that evidence showed more than 95% of road deaths were due to human error such as careless or inattentive driving, inappropriate speed for the road conditions – while drink and drug driving accounted for the majority of deaths and serious injuries.
“The GAA’s support today will help open more conversation about what we can all do, whether we are travelling on foot or on wheels, to help ensure everyone gets to their destination safely.”
Ulster Provincial Secretary Brian McAvoy said the GAA community knew the devastation caused by road deaths and serious injuries all too well.
“This campaign helps to focus all our minds on how our behaviour on the roads impacts many people around us,” he said.
“We all have a responsibility to improve our behaviour on the roads, and I would encourage all, including the GAA family to get behind this campaign and take the Share the Road to Zero pledge.”
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Meanwhile, Mr O’Dowd’s Sinn Féin party colleague, Mid Ulster councillor Gael Gildernew, has called for long-delayed plans for a major upgrade of the A5 to be fast tracked.
She made the appeal following the recent death of Caolan Devlin from Aughamullan, Coalisland.
The 30-year-old died on the Curr Road section of the A5 between Omagh and Ballygawley on March 5 when his car collided with a lorry.
With 49 people having lost their lives since the Assembly approved the project in July 2007, she said: “The current A5 road has been the scene of heartbreak for too many families, and now is the time to move the project forward.”
Further information on the campaign is available at www.sharetheroadtozero.com.
