The Road Safety Authority (RSA) and the gardaí have appealed to drivers, in the run up to the June Bank Holiday weekend to save lives by going easy on the accelerator.
The organisations have asked drivers not only to reduce speed but to always drive at a speed appropriate to all the prevailing conditions.
Over 70,000 speeding offences have already been detected in 2015. Nearly 80% of those detections were for speeds between 10 and 29 km/h over the posted speed limit. A further 10% were in excess of 30 km/h over the posted speed limit.
Figures show that the June Bank Holiday has consistently been the starting point for what is traditionally the most dangerous period on Ireland’s roads – summertime. In the last five years, 256 people have died in June, July and August. Over the next three months it is possible therefore that 51 lives could be lost in crashes on the nation’s roads.
Minister for Transport Tourism and Sport, Paschal Donohoe, said, “Whether it’s farmers out cutting silage, tourists travelling around the country or people heading out for a cycle or walk in the evening, the roads are going to be very busy over the June Bank Holiday and indeed throughout the summer months. So I would appeal to everyone to please take more care on the road. If we watch out for one another and don’t take unnecessary chances we can ensure that we all arrive safely at our destinations.”
Moyagh Murdock, chief executive, Road Safety Authority, Moyagh Murdock, said, “People assume that there are more risks in the wintertime because of the poor weather, poor road conditions and more hours of darkness. But the opposite is true. Summertime is more dangerous. Probably because there are no obvious dangers, the weather is fine and days brighter. So we relax our guard.
Chief Superintendent Mark Curran of the Garda National Traffic Bureau, “We know excessive or inappropriate speed is the main contributory factor in road traffic collisions. If it goes wrong for you on the road, the greater the speed at which you crash, the more severe the consequences will be.”
A native of Ennis, Colin McGann has been editor of The Clare Champion since August 2020. Former editor of The Clare People, he is a journalism and communications graduate of Dublin Institute of Technology.