Gardaí have this year set targets for more drink-driving arrests, and detecting more high-risk driver activity such as speeding.
This is in response to the 399 road deaths last year, the highest for four years.
The Garda Traffic Corps is to target a 15 per cent increase in motorists arrested for drink-driving this year.
The same increase is to be targeted for speeding detections and other dangerous driving-related-offences.
News of the targets comes after the Garda's annual Christmas and New Year drink-driving campaign saw a 14 per cent increase in arrests to 1,297 in the four weeks to Christmas Day compared with the same period 12 months ago.
Senior gardaí are now concerned that motorists are continuing to drink and drive despite increased enforcement and continued road safety campaigns.
They are determined to address these trends this year when the Garda Traffic Corps will receive its first batch of new recruits, increasing its strength from 563 to 805.
These are to be deployed on frontline policing in an effort to achieve the increased arrests.
The new recruits will execute a number of other road safety policies also contained in the new Garda Síochána Policing Plan 2006. These include:
the Traffic Corps is to spend 20 per cent of its time patrolling single-lane carriageways at accident blackspots
30 per cent of Traffic Corps time to be spent on speed enforcement
A further 20 per cent of the corps time to be spent on static high-visibility checkpoints
10 per cent of time to be dedicated to covert road-traffic policing.
In an attempt to improve the road-safety enforcement performance across the force all Garda divisions will be required each month to submit a set of figures to headquarters in Phoenix Park relating to the number of arrests for drink-driving and for breath tests.
The number of speeding and other dangerous-driving-related detections per division will also have to be submitted.
Usually there are 12,000 to 13,000 drink-driving arrests each year, some 160,000 speeding detections and about 6,000 careless-driving detections.
The new targets governing the enforcement of road-traffic legislation make up one of 11 strategic goals contained in the policing plan for this year.
The Garda Commissioner publishes a plan at the beginning of each year. It outlines activities to be undertaken by the Garda for the following 12 months and prioritises them.
This year the fight against organised crime and the illicit drugs trade has again been set as the force's top priority.
Gardaí are to use targeted investigations such as Operation Anvil in the fight against armed crime gangs.
Combating terrorism has also been given priority. Continued emphasis is to be placed on "combating paramilitary activities with specific regard to dissident republicans and the seizure of assets of all unlawful organisations".
Policing in communities in Rapid programme areas is to be reviewed to address persistent vandalism, intimidation and other anti-social behaviour.
Rapid areas are socially disadvantaged neighbourhoods that have been earmarked by the Government for special development and investment.
Under the heading "Crime prevention and reduction" in the policing plan a commitment is given "to focus on high-value white-collar crime, trading in contraband goods".
Under the heading "Organisational and deployment issues" a commitment is given to relieving members of the force from administrative posts through outsourcing, civilianisation and the more effective use of technology. This would allow the maximum number of gardaí to be deployed combating crime.
