MET ÉIREANN HAS issued a Status Yellow fog warning for the entire country, as thousands of people begin their journey home for Christmas.
The warning, issued this afternoon, took effect from 4pm this afternoon and will be in place until 10am on Saturday.
AA Ireland has said that traffic levels in Ireland have been at their heaviest in recent years and are unlikely to relent over the festive period.
The organisation expects that commuter traffic on main routes around the country will peak today and into the weekend.
It is likely that regional towns will see an uptick in traffic over the weekend and early next week as shoppers look for last minute gifts.
“It’s quite likely that traffic will be a bit more spread out this year than it was in previous years, as those travelling further afield for Christmas may opt to delay their journey into the weekend,” AA director of consumer affairs Conor Faughnan said.
“However, we do expect that [today] will be a busy day on our roads, with traffic starting to build in the afternoon as the first way of the Christmas exodus takes place.”
In Dublin, there is heavy traffic around the city, details of which can be found here.
Cork City is experiencing very foggy conditions. In Waterford, the fog has started to lift but patches may linger, AA has warned.
“Drive with extra caution in affected areas and use fog lights where necessary, but remember to turn them off afterwards,” AA said.
Limerick and Galway are also experiencing heavy traffic this evening.
AA Roadwatch has a full breakdown of traffic conditions across the country here.
Take caution
People are being urged to exercise additional caution when driving this weekend.
AA Ireland is asking people to allow some extra time for their journeys this weekend, to adjust their speed to weather conditions that present themselves and to there will still be a large number of pedestrians and cyclists on rural and urban roads.
Motorists who are planning a long-distance journey by car are being reminded of the importance of car maintenance at this time of year.
In particular, they are being asked to check that their tyres and lights are in satisfactory condition.
Weather
The weather is expected to be changeable in the run up to Christmas day, after a week of rain and wind.
Today has been dry for most of the country, with patches of mist and fog in the midlands.
Once the fog clears tomorrow Saturday should be dry with sunny spells and showers, with temperatures between five and eight degrees.
With reporting from Dominic McGrath
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
have your say