THE GARDA has promised to clamp down on speeding and drink-driving this bank holiday weekend as "significant extra" resources are being deployed.
This is usually one of the busiest weekends on the roads and at the airports as hundreds of thousands of people are on the move.
More than 350,000 passengers are expected to travel on some 2,400 flights through Dublin airport between Friday and Monday. Ten per cent of these will be charter flights. Shannon airport is expected to cater for 60,000 passengers on some 150 flights.
For those staying within Ireland, the Garda and the Road Safety Authority are calling on drivers to take extra care. Since 2000, 45 people have been killed on the roads during the August bank holiday; three of these deaths were last year.
More than 2,500 people were caught speeding over the period last year. The Garda says speeding is still the biggest cause of road deaths. "A one km/h decrease in average speed results in a 4 per cent reduction in fatal collisions," it said in a statement.
There will be hundreds of gardaí at drink-driving checkpoints. Some 384 drivers over the legal limit were caught during the last August bank holiday.
"We are slowly seeing a cultural change in attitudes and behaviour away from drink-driving but this must be sustained over the long term to have any benefit," Supt Declan Coburn of the Garda Traffic Bureau said yesterday.
Meanwhile, revellers are reminded they can still be over the limit the morning after a night out.
"There are lots of myths out there about cures and soakage strategies. The only cure is time and it takes on average one hour to get rid of one standard drink," said Fionnuala Sheehan of Meas (Mature Enjoyment of Alcohol in Society).
However, the Road Safety Authority says tiredness is just as dangerous as drink-driving and may be a factor in a fifth of crashes.
Declan Naughton of the authority said: "The notion that turning up the volume on the radio or opening the window cures you of tiredness are myths that need to be dispelled. They simply don't work."
Travellers are being warned of delays caused by the many bank holiday festivals and events. "Tailbacks are inevitable and all drivers should err on the side of caution," Nicola Hudson of AA Roadwatch warned.
Six matches at Croke Park this weekend will also cause delays. AA Roadwatch is warning that the N11 road will be particularly busy tomorrow as Wexford and Wicklow supporters travel to and from the stadium.