Motorcyclist dies in sole road fatality of weekend

THE sole fatality of the Bank Holiday weekend was a young Dublin motorcyclist, who had celebrated his 21st birthday last week.

Christopher Drysdale, who was from New Road Place in Christchurch, Dublin, died after his motorcycle collided with a lorry in Co Westmeath on Friday afternoon.

His death brought to 38 the number of deaths in July, traditionally the worst month of the year for road tragedies.

The National Safety Council (NSC) last night said while the fatality was one too many, it welcomed the reduction in road deaths over the bank holiday period.

Since 2000, 33 people have been killed in 28 fatal crashes over the August bank holiday long weekends.

Five people died over the same period last year.

An NSC spokesman said: “Fine, if we’ve managed to reverse the trend this weekend, but we need to do this every weekend.”

Mr Drysdale lost his life after an accident took place at Gneevebawn, Tyrellspass, in Co Westmeath.

The death toll is 223 so far for 2005 - four more than for the same period last year.

Gardaí said extra traffic checks were in place around the country over the weekend as part of regular operations and that there was a particular focus on drink driving.

Details on the number of drink driving arrests were not available last night.

But almost 6,000 people have been arrested for being over the limit this year - up 16% on last year.

Gardaí arrested 346 people for drink driving on the June Bank Holiday weekend, compared with 295 for the same period last year.

Meanwhile, a notorious 10 kilometre stretch of the main Dublin-Derry road is to be replaced by a €120 million bypass.

The National Roads Authority will also introduce the first of its planned two-plus-one systems on the route between Castleblayney and Monaghan.

A number of people have been killed on that stretch in recent years. The new ‘safe lane’ system provides for an extra overtaking lane.

Castleblayney-based Cllr Brendan Hughes said: “We are anxious to see this project completed as speedily as possible because of current traffic delays, in the area, of more than three-quarters of an hour at peak periods in the area.

“It will also remove the heavy flow of Dublin-Derry traffic from the centre of Castleblayney where four pedestrians died in recent times in accidents involving large vehicles.”