174 road deaths in 2024
A total of 174 people died in 160 fatal collisions throughout 2024, which the RSA says is four per cent less than 2023 (181 deaths in 170 collisions).
However, behind the Road Safety Authority (RSA) statistics is the real human loss of life and a fall of seven lives lost on our roads from a recent record high in 2023 is hardly worthy of headlines. 174 lives lost is 174 too many!
A high proportion of the fatalities last year were male, a continuation of 2023’s increased level of young fatalities (aged 25 years or less) and a high number of fatalities in the evening between 4pm and 8pm.
Dublin (23), Cork (19), Mayo (19) and Donegal (17) were the counties that recorded the highest number of deaths, accounting for 45 per cent of the total fatalities.
Seven in 10 fatal road collisions occurred on roads with a speed limit of 80km/h or greater.
The figures were published yesterday evening by the RSA, following an analysis from provisional fatal collision reports from An Garda Síochána.
Rural local roads speed limits reducing from 80 to 60km/h
In February (2025), the default speed limit on rural local roads will be reduced from 80km/h to 60km/h. Minister of State with responsibility for road safety, James Lawless claims this “will tackle one of the biggest contributory factors to road collisions – speed”.
According to assistant commissioner Paula Hilman, Gardaí conducted “more than 100,000 checkpoints on Irish roads” in 2024, half of which she says were “mandatory intoxicant testing”. As someone who put up big mileage on the roads last year, I can confidently count on one hand the number of Garda checkpoints I passed through or spotted in 2024.
And while RSA chief executive Sam Waide calls the mere four per cent drop in road deaths “progress”, the truth is that we are far-beyond needing to put up with the RSA’s so-called “impactful awareness campaigns”. A significant increase in Garda roads policing is the only way to tackle the abysmal quality of driving witnessed everyday on our roads.
Until this is the case, the Government can forget about their aim of reducing the number of deaths and serious injuries on Irish roads by 50 per cent by 2030.