A total of 59 people have been killed or seriously injured in Easter Bank Holiday crashes since 2012, according to figures released by the Road Safety Authority (RSA) and An Garda Síochána.
So as a result of that, Gardai have launched a campaign aimed at reducing incidents this weekend.
The focus of this year’s Easter Bank Holiday education and enforcement campaign is drink and drug driving.
The Gardai is mounting Mandatory Intoxicant Testing (MIT) checkpoints nationwide, which will see drivers tested for the presence of alcohol and drugs.
The most recent research available on the role of alcohol in road crashes was published recently by the RSA, which examined the toxicology reports of those killed in road crashes in 2014.
It found that one third (33%) of drivers/motorcyclists that died had alcohol in their system at the time of their deaths.
Based on other reports it is estimated that drugs play a role in as many as one in ten fatal crashes in this country.
A total of 38 people have been killed on Irish roads to date in 2018.
This represents a decline of eight deaths compared to the same date last year.
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