Twenty people died on Irish roads in January.

As weather conditions improve and drivers begin to take more chances, Gardaí are reminding the public that the first month of the year had the highest number of road traffic fatalities of any January in a decade.

That’s why you’ll be seeing an increased Garda presence on roads across the country for the next 24 hours as part of An Garda Síochána’s national speed enforcement operation Slow Down, supported by the Road Safety Authority (RSA).

The aim of Slow Down Day is to remind drivers of the dangers of driving at an excessive or inappropriate speed and reduce the number of speed-related collisions and injuries.

In the first two hours of National Slow Down Day, Gardaí have already stopped a driver doing 76km/h in a 50km/h Zone on the Limerick Road in Mallow. Another motorist was stopped doing 66km/h in a 50km/h Zone on the Skehard Road.

156 lives lost in 2022

Last year saw fatal and serious injury road traffic collisions increase with 156 people fatally injured, the largest death toll on our roads since 2016.

Recent Garda enforcement data and RSA research demonstrate that drivers continue to speed. During 2022, 73 percent of fatal collisions occurred on rural (80km/h or more) roads with 27 percent on urban roads.

It has been estimated that 30 percent of fatal collisions are the result of speeding or inappropriate speed.

“This National Slow Down Day, and indeed every day, please remember the faster you drive, the more likely you are to crash which could result in death or serious injury,” said Sam Waide, CEO, Road Safety Authority.

“Slow down – drive at a speed that is appropriate to the conditions and your experience and remember a speed limit is not a target.”

The operation will consist of high visibility speed enforcement across the road network.