Carlow motorists urged to drive safely as gardaí out in force over Bank Holiday weekend

An Garda Síochána and the Road Safety Authority have appealed to Carlow drivers to stay safe this Bank Holiday weekend as at this time road users are at the highest risk of being involved in a fatal or serious road traffic collision. 

So far this year, 138 people have lost their lives on Irish roads. 

Gardaí have urged all road users to 'Be Safe, Be Seen' this weekend as there will be shorter daylight hours and the clocks will be going back one hour on Sunday night. 

Gardaí have advised drivers to use dipped headlights during the day, particularly if their vehicle does not have Daytime Running Lights.

They added that pedestrians and cyclists should wear high-visibility clothing and ensure they are clearly visible in darker conditions – statistics show a rise in pedestrian injuries on Irish roads between October and December each year. Of the road fatalities so far this year, 29 were pedestrians.

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Gardaí said: "Data recorded over the period 2020-2024 shows that 1,462 pedestrians were seriously injured following a road traffic collision. More than one-third (34%) of these serious injuries occurred between October and December. And the data shows that 21% of pedestrians in these incidents failed to observe properly."

They revealed that the types of injuries sustained by pedestrians were predominantly head and lower limb injuries, with an average length of stay of 11 days in hospital. Hospital data also shows that 1,384 pedestrians were admitted to hospital between 2020 and 2024 following a road traffic collision. Of all those hospitalised, 418 (30%) sustained clinically serious injuries, often with long-term impacts. Two-thirds were male and one-third were aged 65 or older.

An Garda Síochána is conducting a dedicated road traffic enforcement operation in Carlow and across the country this Bank Holiday weekend. The operation will continue until 7am on Tuesday morning, 28 October. 

The focus will be on detecting and deterring key risk behaviours such as speeding, impaired driving, mobile phone use, and non-wearing of seat belts.