ULSTER GAA is the latest organisation to show its support for improving road safety in Northern Ireland.
The council has signed up to the ‘Share the Road to Zero’ campaign, which aims to reduce road deaths by encouraging people to take more responsibility and care on the roads.
Other high-profile signings include the Northern Ireland Football League, PSNI, Northern Ireland Ambulance Service, Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service and a range of local councils.
The move comes after figures show 71 people lost their lives on roads in the North in 2023, compared to 55 deaths in 2022 and 50 in 2021.
“We are delighted Ulster GAA is taking the ‘Share the Road to Zero’ pledge,” Department for Infrastructure Minister John O’Dowd said.
“Their support will help us raise better awareness of what we can all do to change our behaviours on the road.”
He added: “Our rising road deaths are an area of deep concern and the GAA family is among those deeply affected by these losses.
“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.”
Ulster Provincial Secretary Brian McAvoy met Minister O’Dowd to take the Share the Road to Zero pledge.
“I am delighted to pledge my commitment to the aims of the Share the Road to Zero campaign,” he said.
“The GAA family, along with society generally, knows the devastation of serious injuries and deaths on our roads.
“This campaign helps to focus all our minds on how our behaviour on the roads impacts many people around us.
“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.”
Evidence shows more than 95 per cent of road deaths are due to human error – careless or inattentive driving, inappropriate speed for the road or the conditions, and drink and drug driving account for the majority of deaths and serious injuries.
“The GAA’s support today will help open more conversations about what we can all do, whether we are travelling on foot or on wheels, to help ensure everyone gets to their destination safely,” Minister O’Dowd added.