Introduction

The Transport Research Laboratory TRL stopping distance formulas are the root cause of road crashes resulting in death, injury and damage for 73 years since 1946.  TRL, now privatised is owned by the Transport Research Foundation TRF but was established by the British Government in 1933 and designed the Highway Code Stopping Distances based on an incorrect formula introduced by Parliament on 31 07 1946.  By 2019, TRL had added a further 4 incorrect stopping distance formulas and now mislead their 1,000 clients in 145 countries worldwide, including the British and Irish Governments, on stopping distances and formulas.

In 2018, the Deputy Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland PSNI having used the 1946 TRL designed Highway Code stopping formula for 34 years became the Garda Commissioner, while his Garda Deputy now uses the 1981 TRRL1004 stopping formula by AR Quimby and GR Watts.  These two TRL stopping formulas differ by 1.52 seconds 50 metres when stopping from a speed of 120 km/h and were designed while TRL was under British Government control before TRL was privatised in 1996.  Because of the TRL and British Government mistakes, road fatalities in Ireland are higher in 2019 than in 2018, while 2018 road fatalities were higher than in 1926, 96 years earlier.  This is also the case in all countries using the TRL British Government stopping formulas.

The TRL stopping formulas are incorrect as they allow 0.67 seconds, 1.50 seconds, 2.20 seconds and 3.50 seconds thinking/perception/reaction time/distance before braking, braking distances beyond emergency standard and for one-way roads only.  In 2019, TRL misleads; the Police, RSA, the unknown SRA, DVSA, Highway Code, British and Irish Governments, as well as the European Union and their 1,000 clients on stopping distances and incorrectly advises the RSA and European Commission who is introducing ‘Vision Zero 2050’.

In 2012 and 2016 TRL, was appointed as the sole contractor for phase one and phase two of the Department for Transport’s (DfT) Road Accident in Depth Studies programme (RAIDS) with Richard Cuerden, Chief Scientist, Engineering and Technology and M. McCarthy TRL in charge. In 2008, TRL confirmed in writing, they are unable to locate the 1946 Highway Code stopping distance formula and referred my queries to the Road Safety Authority RSA, as did the Gardai.  The RSA commissioned TRL to examine the stopping distances in the Rules of the Road and TRL produced a brand-new formula for SRA, not RSA.  This incorrect unpublished TRL RPN2213 formula with incorrect Reference Books, was used to answer Parliamentary Questions 721/2 and mislead the Dail and the courts on stopping distances.

In 2017 Cuerden researched the stopping distances for the Charity ‘Brake’ and found the Highway Code stopping distances, designed by TRL and introduced by Parliament on 31 07 1946 are incorrect and should be changed.  In 2018, TRL received over £10m in fees and charges from DfT and other amounts from their 1,000 clients.

26 03 2019, the European Commission after many years of advice from TRL, Tweeted and the RSA Retweeted; “We want to move close to Zero fatalities and serious injuries on our roads by 2050”.  This is 31 years from now, with life expectancy of 100 years for some and it is 181 years after the first road fatality in Ireland in 1869.

I designed the Driving ScoreCard System 10 to 120 km/h, based on VBOX measurements to train and test drivers worldwide to similar standard, maximum speed limits or each drivers speed limitation, without the aid of dual controls.  VBOX is the world’s most accurate recorder of speed in time and distance.

On 25 05 1997, I discovered the Highway Code stopping distances used in the Rules of the Road in Ireland are incorrect, when Christopher Moore 3 years and 11 months was fatally injured by a car driven by a Garda driver, who stopped 20 metres after impact. I designed the Driving ScoreCard Research 1 to 300 km/h, based on VBOX time and distance measurements, to prove my discovery that TRL was incorrectly advising the Gardai and the RSA and to establish the speed limitation of rule makers, medical practitioners, roads, cars and their drivers.

I invited TRL and their 1,000 clients to disprove my findings by demonstration. Rob Wallis the TRL CEO and none of the 1,000 clients have so far accepted my invitation.

On 06 06 2019, having corresponded with the Garda Traffic Department, Now Roads Policing, for over 18 years, I brought my research discovery to the attention of the newly appointed Garda Commissioner Drew Harris, by Registered Post. As Deputy Police Commissioner of the Police Service of Northern Ireland PSNI and having used the Highway Code stopping distance formula introduced by Parliament on 31 07 1946 for 34 years, you now differ on stopping from a speed of 120 km/h by 1.53 seconds 57 metres from that outlined by your Deputy Commissioner John Twomey and Chief Superintendent Aiden Reid who both use the 1981 TRL AR Quimby and GR Watts stopping formulas.

On 13 06 2019 @ 11:50 Corporate.Services responded in an unsigned email: Subject: Fatal Road Crashes; Reference HQCSO_1-333842/19

Dear Mr. Cullinane, On behalf of the Commissioner, the Garda Corporate Services Office wishes to acknowledge receipt of your attached correspondence. Your correspondence has been forwarded to Assistant Commissioner Roads Policing.  This office will contact you in due course.

Should you have any additional queries on this matter, please contact the Office of the Assistant Commissioner, Roads Policing and Major Event Management, Garda Headquarters, Phoenix Park, Dublin 8.  Kind regards, Corporate Services Office, An Garda Síochána. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

On 13 06 2019 @ 21;29, I responded; Dear Sir or Madam at Corporate Services (As You have not provided a name).  With respect, three people died on the roads in the last week and the Assistant Commissioner David Sheahan, Roads Policing has not responded to my queries since 21 05 2018 and that is the reason I wrote to you.

Based on responses which I did receive during the past nine years from Roads Policing/Garda Traffic and the response from an unnamed person in Corporate Services it is my opinion that there may now be Collusion, Malpractice and possible Corruption involving members of Roads policing, who fail to correct the 1946 Transport Research Laboratory TRL stopping distance formula mistake.

It is this mistake by TRL which results in the continuation of road fatalities in 145 countries worldwide. I now wish to lodge an official complaint with the Garda Commissioner Drew Harris about the service provided by Chief Superintendent Aiden Reid, Deputy Garda Commissioner John Twomey and the unnamed person in Corporate Services who sent this acknowledgement claiming it will be responded to in ‘Due Course’.

I can demonstrate my research discovery in 48 seconds 800m to a speed of 120 km/h but find that after dealing with Roads Policing, I must now wait for ‘Due Course’. I do expect an early acknowledgment and confirmation that Commissioner Drew Harris is made aware of my complaint, and not a response in ‘due course’.

• · Was Commissioner Harris made aware of my discovery by his secretary?
• · Is there Collusion, Malpractice and possible Corruption at TRL, RSA and Roads Policing?
• · Do rule makers/enforcers fear the financial, legal and other consequences of TRLs mistakes?

I invite rule makers and rule enforcers worldwide to disprove my findings by demonstration.

Frank Cullinane