Three people have died in two road accidents, bringing the number of fatalities on the State's roads this year to 31. James Fitzgerald reports.
In Co Laois, a 22 year old woman believed to be from Limerick, and a 23 year old man thought to be from Co Carlow, were killed instantly when the car in which they were travelling collided with a bus at Aghafin, Mountrath, at 1.10 a.m. yesterday.
The accident took place on the main Dublin-Limerick road. It is thought that their car burst into flames shortly after the head-on collision.
Traffic on the N7 was reduced to one lane for several hours during the night as gardaí and emergency services dealt with the scene.
The bodies of the two victims were removed to Portlaoise General Hospital.
The six occupants of the bus were not thought to be seriously injured, although they were also taken to hospital in Portlaoise for observation.
Meanwhile, gardaí in Leighlinbridge are investigating a fatal accident which occurred at Moanduff, Co Carlow, at 1.45 p.m. on Monday.
A man in his 30s, believed to be Scottish, was killed when his motorcycle struck a wall.
Gardaí say no other vehicle was involved in the accident, and the deceased man's name has not been released pending the notification of his next of kin in Scotland.
The January total of 31 is one fewer than for the same period last year. In 2004 a total of 379 people died in road traffic accidents, which was 40 more than in the previous 12 months.
Overall, however, road deaths have been on a steady decline since they reached an all-time high of 628 in 1978.
In 2003 the number of deaths fell sharply on the previous year's figure, a development credited in part to the introduction of penalty points for speeding and other road offences. However, statistics for last year and the first month of 2005 suggest that the initial preventive effects of penalty points are wearing off.
