Gardaí have warned they will monitor motorists leaving pubs this weekend in a road safety operation aimed at cutting road deaths.
Operation Lifesaver, the latest Garda safety campaign, begins this evening and will focus particularly on drink driving. The operation runs throughout the June bank holiday weekend, concluding next Monday.
Three people were killed and 54 people were injured over the June bank holiday last year.
An Garda Siochána
"Each night of the operation a major town or centre in every Garda division will be selected for intense Garda attention, checkpoints will be set up and mobile patrols will monitor licensed premises and people leaving licensed premises," the Garda press office said.
Checkpoints will be put in place at pub closing time and unmarked Garda cars will target "habitual drink drivers who leave pubs prior to, or after closing time".
In a statement, the Garda said: "The key message is - If you drink, don't drive.
"People who drink and drive may kill or injure themselves or others. They also face the prospect of being arrested, convicted in court, disqualified from driving, fined and even imprisonment."
The Garda said every person who uses the roads as a driver, passenger or pedestrian is responsible for road safety and can collectively contribute to saving lives "by acting responsibly".
"The majority of drivers do not drink and drive however there is still a sizeable number who continue to drink and drive and they will be the focus of concentrated Garda enforcement over the coming months."
Some 6,145 people were arrested for drink driving offences between January 1 stand May 1 stthis year, the Garda said.
A total of 168 people have died on the State's roads in 142 separate collisions up to this morning, according to Garda figures.
The number includes 34 pedestrians, 42 passengers, 80 drivers, three cyclists and nine motorcyclists - in all, eight more people than died between January 1 stand June 1 st2005.
The National Safety Council (NSC) says that exceeding speed limits or driving too fast for conditions is the single largest factor contributing to road deaths in Ireland.
"Over 40 per cent of fatal accidents are caused by excessive or inappropriate speed," it says.
The safety body also warns that without a seat belt, three out of four people will be killed or injured in a head-on crash at 30 miles per hour, around 50 km/h.