Road safety plea to NI parishes

PSNI has enlisted the help of the Churches in Northern Ireland to deliver a road safety message

The PSNI has enlisted the help of the Churches in Northern Ireland to deliver a road safety message to parishioners, as the road death toll in the North rises.

So far 58 people have lost their lives on the North’s roads in 2014, which is the same amount as the whole of last year, according to Assistant Chief Constable Stephen Martin.

“We all share the responsibility of making our roads safer,” he said in a letter to Church leaders last week. “The responsibility lies with each and every one of us to ensure we are not risking our own lives or the lives of others.

“This means slowing down, wearing our seatbelts, paying full attention to the road and never driving after drinking alcohol. It sounds simple. It makes sense. We just need to do it.”

The road safety message has been sent to Catholic parishes for church notice boards and to be read out at Masses. The Church of Ireland, Presbyterian and Methodist Churches have also committed to highlighting the issue to congregations.

Last Friday, Archbishop Eamon Martin tweeted a road safety message asking people to “take care and remember those who mourn”.