Louth County Council launches the ‘Gift of a Lift’ Christmas Campaign

With the festive party season now underway, those of us who are preparing to go out celebrating in Co Louth are being asked to think ahead to ensure everyone gets home safely. 

Adrian O'Sullivan, Road Safety Officer with Louth County Council has the following timely advice:

“The Christmas party season is getting into full swing and it's a time when many of us will be out enjoying the festivities. To encourage people to get home safely, Louth County Council have launched their ‘Gift A Lift’ road safety Christmas card campaign.

The idea is that you commit to staying sober to give a family member or friend one lift home or organise a taxi for them over the festive season using the specially designed ‘Here’s something that will give you a little lift this Christmas’ card”. 

Adrian added “The ‘Gift of a lift’ card is a novel way of getting across a serious message as road users need to be extra careful at this time of year when roads are at their busiest and conditions can be dangerous. It's not worth taking a chance on driving if you have consumed any alcohol or drugs. Don’t let your actions spoil a good night out and bring tragedy to your family this Christmas.”

While alcohol remains the most frequently detected intoxicant in driving in Ireland, cannabis is the second most frequently found intoxicant with detection rates among drivers continuing to increase, with cocaine being the third most found intoxicant drug detected. As drug use in Irish society continues to increase and diversify this translates into more dangerous intoxicated driving.

The new system for drug testing allows for the collection of the oral fluid in a very rapid fashion, reducing the test time to 2 – 8 minutes and is like an Covid Antigen test. It can detect the presence of Cannabis, Cocaine, Benzodiazepines, Opiates, Amphetamine and Methamphetamine. This enhanced drug testing system is timely as drug use in Irish society continues to increase and diversify which in turn translates into more dangerous intoxicated driving. 

Also speaking at the launch of the campaign was Sergeant Declan Higgins from the Co Louth Garda Roads Policing Unit who welcoming the initiative had this advice:

“This year there have been 148 fatalities on our roads countrywide as of 6th December, eight of which have occurred in County Louth alone. That’s 148 empty seats at the table this Christmas Day which is far too high, and we must all work together keep each other safe.

"We have begun our Christmas enforcement campaign with targeted mandatory intoxicant testing checkpoints throughout the county. We have been issued with new roadside drug testing equipment and zero tolerance will be applied to any breaches of road safety.”

Also present at the launch to support the ‘Gift of a lift’ initiative were members of the National Ambulance Service and Louth Fire and Civil Protection.  The effects of attending the scene of road traffic collisions can be profound on members of the emergency services as well as families, friends, and local communities. 

Joe Lumsden, Senior Assistant Chief Fire Officer with Louth Fire & Rescue Service and Pat Smyth Ambulance Officer and Advance paramedic with the National Ambulance Service have the following message:

“We are urging all road users to act responsibly and to not drink or drug drive when using the roads throughout the Christmas and New Year period. No members of the emergency services want to attend a crash which will result in a road death”.

We all know someone for whom it can be difficult to choose a Christmas present, so why not give them the ‘Gift of a Lift’ and ensure they get home safely over the party season. The card can be collected from any County Louth library branch (subject to availability) or downloaded for free from the Road Safety section at www.Louthcoco.ie.

148 people have died on the roads as of 8th December 2022 – this represents an increase of 25 on the same day last year. Separately, 1,174 people were seriously injured on our roads this year up to 27 November 2022.