Cork, Mayo, and Galway had most road deaths in Ireland so far this year

Excluding the deaths involved in a rally in Sligo this month, 96 people lost their lives on Irish roads up to Wednesday, July 19. Stock picture: Linda Steward/iStock

Kildare is the only county in Ireland that has not yet had a road death this year, while Cork, Mayo, and Galway are currently the deadliest in the country.

According to data from the Parc road safety group, the number of people killed on Irish roads this year has risen sharply compared to last year.

Up to Wednesday, July 19, 96 people have lost their lives on Irish roads, excluding the deaths involved in a rally in Sligo this month.

Of the 96, 41 were drivers, 17 were passengers, 22 were pedestrians, 12 were on motorbikes, two were scooter drivers, one was a pillion passenger, and one was a cyclist.

14 more deaths than last year

The number of fatalities to date is up by 14 compared to the corresponding period last year, according to Parc.

Traffic on Irish roads is almost the same now as it was before the pandemic, which severely curtailed all transport modes, data from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) shows.

A comparison of the average weekly volume of cars at selected Dublin sites for the past four years reveals that this year is only marginally short of the 2019 figures.

The CSO data shows that, at the halfway point of 2023, nearly 594,000 cars were counted that week, compared to 601,500 in 2019. In 2020, the first year of the pandemic restrictions, fewer than 413,500 were counted.

Regional breakdown

When it comes to regional traffic numbers, the patterns are similar. In 2023, just under 197,800 were counted on week 26 of the year in selected regional sites, compared to just over 198,000 in 2019. The number is 2020 was just under 135,000.

Parc’s data shows that Kildare is the safest county on Irish roads, which it says corresponds to its own observation of enforcement by authorities, said Parc spokeswoman Susan Gray.

Ms Gray added that the noticeable spike in Mayo, Galway, and Cork warranted an investigation by the Road Safety Authority.

Parc’s figures show that, at this stage of the year, 11 people have died on Mayo roads, followed by 10 each in Galway and Cork. The Mayo and Galway figures are up by nine and seven respectively compared to 2022.

Dublin and Meath had six road deaths each so far this year, followed by Westmeath with five, and Tipperary, Limerick, Kerry, and Cavan with four each.

Only Kildare had none, followed by one each in Waterford, Wexford, Carlow, Laois, and Leitrim.

Passenger deaths rise

It has been a far deadlier year for pedestrians and passengers, the Parc data shows.

There were 17 passenger deaths so far in 2023, up by six compared to the same period last year.

So far this year, 22 pedestrians have died, compared with 14 in 2022, Parc said.

It was revealed last month that Ireland is among the worst in the EU when it comes to pedestrian road deaths.

Although the country is far below the EU average for road deaths as a whole, nearly a third of those killed here are pedestrians, according to figures from Eurostat, the EU’s statistical office.

What's your view on this issue?

You can tell us here

Rural roads across the EU are by far the most dangerous, accounting for just under 10,500 or 52.5 % of the total in 2021, followed by urban roads with 7,700 fatalities or almost 39%.

Motorways are the safest roads, with just under 1,750 deaths or almost 9%.

According to Eurostat, almost 20,000 people were killed in road accidents in the EU in 2021, an increase of 5.7% compared with 2020.