ROAD HAULIERS HAVE warned of a “epidemic” of mobile phone use at the wheel, visible to truck drivers from the vantage point of their cabs.

The Irish Road Haulage Association association has also warned of tailgating, dangerous overtaking on country roads and people not knowing how to behave on roundabouts.

Ger Hyland, president of the association, said there is insufficient garda enforcement of mobile phone use by drivers. 

He said driver standards are at an “all-time low”, with speeding and mobile phone use particularly prevalent among drivers. Hyland said hauliers can see people texting and browsing social media while driving from their position in their cabs. Hauliers are in a unique position with their “birds eye view” perspective of the road, he explained.

Mobile phone use “is an epidemic that is causing accidents and road deaths and there doesn’t seem to be any consistent garda enforcement to stamp it out.”

Hyland said he has heard accusations of hauliers themselves using their phones while driving, adding that he would not defend any haulier engaging in this “bad behaviour”.

Hyland also expressed concern at the condition of some country roads. Poor road infrastructure and areas with “accident black spots” need to be improved, he said. He also suggested increased driver education may be needed.

“The road is our workplace,” Hyland said. “Road safety is everybody’s responsibility.”

As of this morning, 42 people had lost their lives on the roads so far this year, down from 55 last year. In 2024, there were over 170 deaths on Irish roads.

Road deaths increased in the years after the pandemic, a trend that seems to have been driven by a deterioration in driver behaviour. 

Garda road policing has increased to tackle the deadly trend, with uniform officers required to do 30 minutes road policing per shift since last year. Gardaí have also been using an unmarked truck to catch people breaking the law, such as by using their phones at the wheel or not wearing a seatbelt.

Research presented to the government and gardaí last year concluded Irish drivers estimate the risk of being caught using the phone at the wheel at “close to zero”.