Speeding motorists targeted in 24-hour Garda operation

A 24-hour Garda speed enforcement operation supported by the Road Safety Authority (RSA) is under way with speed checks expected on all main roads.

Operation Slow Down runs from 7am on Friday to 7am on Saturday.

As in previous years, the force will, throughout the day, report examples of the types of speeds at which people are breaking national speed limits.

In an early update, the force said a motorist was clocked travelling at 87km/h in a 60km/h zone on the R267 at Portnason in Ballyshannon, Co Donegal; another was recorded doing 85km/h in a 60km/h zone on the Clones Road in Monaghan and another was noted doing 121km/h in a 100km/h zone on the N11 at Newtownmountkennedy, Co Wicklow.

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The RSA said the aim of Slow Down Day is to remind drivers of the dangers of speeding, to increase compliance with speed limits and act as a deterrent to driving at excessive or inappropriate speed.

The campaign forms part of a pan-European day of action aimed at combating speeding on the roads.

Last year saw an increase in fatal road crashes in the State, with 157 being killed on the roads, the largest toll since 2016. So far this year, there have been 52 deaths on the roads, an increase of three on the same day last year.

Recent Garda enforcement data and RSA research demonstrates drivers are continuing to speed.

During last year, 73 per cent of fatal collisions occurred on rural (80km/h or more) roads, with 27 per cent on urban roads.

It has been estimated that 30 per cent of fatal collisions are as a direct result of speeding or inappropriate speed.

Chief Supt Jane Humphries, of the Garda National Roads Policing Bureau, said: “As we all hit the road, it’s important to remember that every time we get behind the wheel, we hold the responsibility of keeping ourselves and others safe.

“Unfortunately, accidents and fatalities on the road are still far too common, and one of the big causes of these incidents is speeding.”