ROAD USERS HAVE been urged to reduce speed and stay safe after seven people were killed in a “devastating” weekend on Irish roads. 

Garda superintendent Eddie Golden this afternoon appealed for the public to “do the right thing and to have a positive contribution to road safety”. 

“It comes back to personal responsibility and making sure that whether you’re a pedestrian, cyclist or motorcylist… that you’re doing the necessary and making yourself safe on the roads,” Golden said speaking to members of the press this afternoon. 

“Unfortunately, we do find that there’s a number of different people still not doing the right thing.” 

Golden said gardaí this weekend saw speeds of 192 kilometres and 154 kilometres in 120 kilometre zones, which he said shows “there are a number of people not heeding these advices”. 

29 people have died on Irish roads so far this year, seven of whom died over the most recent weekend.

Three people were killed in a crash in Louth in the early hours of Saturday morning. A woman was killed in a single-vehicle crash in Galway on Sunday. 

A male pedestrian died on Saturday after a crash in Monaghan and two people were killed in a road crash on Friday night in Cavan. 

A spokesperson for the Road Safety Authority (RSA) told TheJournal.ie that it is “difficult to say” what caused the high number of road deaths over the weekend.

They said the RSA will continue working with the gardaí to implement the road safety strategy. 

“It’s always hard to see how we can recover from weekends like this… we need to make sure we don’t become complacent,” the spokesperson said. 

“Public road users need to step up to the plate and do their part,” they said, adding that relevant government departments need to continue enforcing road safety. 

There were 19 fatalities on Irish roads in total last month. The RSA is aiming for no more than 124 deaths on Irish roads this year. 

‘Devastating weekend’ 

Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland this morning, CEO of the RSA Moyagh Murdock said the past weekend was “devastating”. 

“Five families left dealing with the consequences of those dreadful crashes over the 48-hour period,” said Murdock. 

“In Ireland, we seem to have a real problem at the weekends. The number of collisions and serious and fatal crashes that take place is disproportionate and it really is a problem we need to deal with.”

She said the RSA wanted to reduce the number of deaths on Irish roads to 10 a month. 

“We really need to be vigilant. People need to make wise decisions, look out for each other,” said Murdock.

“We’re just urging people and asking them to slow down and make the right choice… the consequences just can’t be over emphasised.”

Road users were advised by the RSA to take care at the weekend during the course of Storm Jorge and to be “on guard” for hazards such as fallen trees and branches.