Traffic jams up as jobs recover

Tailbacks and traffic congestion is set to worsen this winter and could hit the ‘bad old days’ of jams and delays that characterised towns and cities in the years of the Tiger boom, the AA has warned.

An unwanted side-effect of the recovering economy, data from the AA and the Road Safety Authority shows traffic volumes are up, with the roads set to get even busier.

“Traffic volumes are up across the road network and we are seeing that every day,” said Editor of AA Roadwatch, Arwen Foley. “September and the return of schools and colleges always marks our busiest season for traffic. In the major population centres, especially Dublin, Cork and Galway, we have seen congestion increase noticeably this year. We are expecting the months from now until Christmas to be the busiest in years.”