In some countries safety campaigns warn of the dangers of cycling while using headphones. Now Dublin LUAS drivers have added their voice to the debate.
A new road safety drive aimed at cutting fatalities on the roads of the Republic has heard calls from LUAS drivers for a ban on cyclists using headphones to listen to music.
Speaking on behalf of LUAS drivers at the campaign launch, driver Michelle McDonald said cyclists using headphones were a major road safety risk.
And she called on the practice to be banned, saying LUAS trams made relatively little noise and that cyclists wearing headphones were not able to hear them.
"We have a lot of pedestrians, a lot of cyclists, who cycle out in front of us, walk out in front of us," she said.
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"It’s a terrifying experience to see people walk out in front of us, we have to react straight away to that.
"People cycling with their headphones in is a huge problem for us, and cycling on the tracks.
"So really we wish people just wouldn't do that anymore, it shouldn't be allowed.
“They're not listening to the traffic, they don't hear the trams - trams are so silent."
The Garda’s ‘Safer Roads for Dublin’ campaign launch at which McDonald was speaking will see members of the force target road users breaking red lights in the next two months.
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The initiative is being run through October and November because of the high number of road traffic collisions, including fatalities, which normally occur at that time of year.
"We are aiming this red light running campaign at all drivers, cyclists and pedestrians and appealing to them to reduce the risk to themselves and others by simply obeying the rules of the road when the traffic light is red,” said Chief Supt Aidan Reid at the launch.
The officer, who is in charge of the Garda Traffic Corps in Dublin, said with 1,620 sets of traffic lights in the capital, if red light running was addressed road safety would improve greatly for all road users.
“Heed the message we are sending out today; don’t gamble with your safety - red means stop for all,” he said.
And he insisted the campaign was about reducing risk rather than seeking to catch more people breaking the rules of the road.
“This year we are seeing a significant reduction in fatalities in the Dublin area with seven fewer than this time last year,” Chief Supt Reid said of the 10 fatalities in the Dublin region so far this year compared with 17 in the same period last year.
“A serious or even fatal collision can happen in the blink of an eye. Please help us keep Dublin’s roads as safe as possible for all who use them.”
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