TikTok trend
Road safety officials have raised concerns that a new TikTok trend will end in "carnage".
It involves drivers videoing themselves racing home while on their phone to a family member or loved one.
They tell them to pretend to be injured so the driver isn't punished by Gardaí for speeding.
Some of the videos of relatives lying on kitchen floors have racked up thousands of likes on TikTok.
Noel Gibbons Road Safety Officer, in Co Mayo says the trend is dangerous:
"It is a life endangering practice and It’s especially risky for young, inexperienced drivers – who are already extremely vulnerable to crashes – to be distracted when they are behind the wheel,"
"Answering a call or reading a text is never worth a loss of life.’’
Declan Keogh, Road Safety Officer, in Co Kildare, says:
"Simply put, it is unsafe and illegal to use a hand-held mobile phone while driving for whatever purpose, except in the case of an emergency, and we're asking motorists to just drive for your safety and the safety of others.”
According to research by the RSA, driver distraction is thought to play a role in 20-30% of all road collisions.
Distraction is caused by a competing activity, event or object from inside or outside the vehicle.
The vast majority of drivers (over 39%) report using their mobile phone at least sometimes while driving and it is estimated that, at any given moment during the day, 2-6% of drivers are using a mobile phone.
