The deaths of four people yesterday in three separate road accidents, on what the National Safety Council described as a "day of carnage", has brought the number of people killed on Irish roads this year so far to 248 - an increase of 20 for the same period last year.
"This is an awful, awful, awful day of carnage. Our first thoughts are with their families, but it is a reminder of something we have to live with every day," said council executive Mr Brian Farrell.
The four victims lost their lives within a three-hour period. A female pedestrian died after being struck by a motorcycle in Ballyfermot, Dublin, at around 9 a.m. She had been walking along the Ballyfermot Road at the time.
Less than an hour earlier two young people died in an accident involving their car and an articulated lorry at Belvedere House on the N52 near Mullingar, Co Westmeath.
At 6.25 a.m. Mr Brendan Lonergan (46), Ardkeen, Cavan, was killed when the articulated lorry he was driving crashed at Castletara, Co Cavan.
While the loss of life was in itself tragic, said Mr Farrell, it was particularly worrying that it had occurred just before the weekend, the most dangerous time of the week for road deaths.
"We are about to head into the weekend, the most high-risk time of the week, and it is more than likely more people will have been killed by Monday morning. That is the tragic reality."
Road deaths had been on the decrease since penalty points were introduced for speeding in October 2002. However, their impact has lessened in recent months.
"Road deaths had been going down over the last couple of years. This year they are increasing. Unfortunately, people are reverting back to bad driving behaviour." This reversal in attitudes was borne out by the statistics. "If we just look at the figures alone, an average of 30 people have been killed each month this year.
"For the first four months of penalty points, it was an average of 20 people. Government strategies and initiatives are going to fail if people don't support them and if individuals don't start taking responsibility for their own behaviour."
The council is asking people to take particular care this weekend as Met Éireann is forecasting more bad weather tomorrow. "Given the bad weather we've had and what's to come, the roads are going to be even more treacherous."
