New speed limit on rural local roads from February 7
ON Friday, February 7, the speed limit on many rural local roads will change from 80 kilometres per hour to 60 kilometres per hour.
Ahead of that, the ‘Slower Speeds, Safer Roads’ information and awareness campaign has been launched to highlight the forthcoming change in speed limits on rural local roads.
The campaign will run on radio, online, in print, and in ‘out of home’ locations to increase awareness of this change.
Local authorities, including Mayo County Council, have received grants to change speed limit signs from ‘80’ to ‘60’ on relevant local roads. These will be in place on February 7, so road users can see clearly which limit applies.
The striped ‘rural speed limit sign’, which is used as an alternative to numeric speed limit signs on specific single lane rural roads, will also now mean that a maximum 60km/h limit is in force.
For more information on changes in their local area, people should check with their local authority.
International research indicates that speed is a contributory factor in a third of fatal collisions, and that reducing speed significantly reduces road deaths.
A speed limit review published in September 2023 concluded that protecting vulnerable road users must be a key focus when setting speed limits. For example, the risk of being killed is much greater for collisions between a car and a vulnerable road user at 50 km/h, when compared with the same type of collision at 30 km/h.
In April 2024, the Road Traffic Act 2024 was signed into law and included provisions to amend the default speed limits on rural, local roads, urban roads and national secondary roads. The change in default speed limits for rural local roads, from 80km/h to 60km/h, will be implemented first, starting on February 7.
Future implementation phases will focus on the speed limit in urban cores, which include built up areas as well as housing estates and town centres, reducing to 30 km/h. The speed limit on national secondary roads is recommended to reduce from 100km/h to 80km/h.
Countries across Europe, including France and the UK, have lowered speed limits on certain road types in recent years. Subsequent research has indicated that reducing speed limits contributed to a 10% reduction in road fatalities in France and contributed to a reduction in insurance costs in the UK.
Local authorities can make changes to the default by setting ‘special speed limits’ for given roads in their areas, where appropriate. The Department of Transport issued new guidelines to local authorities in early 2024 to assist them with this process.
As with all speed limits, it will be an offence to exceed the stated limit and enforcement will be a matter for An Garda Síochána. The Department of Transport has been working with An Garda Síochána to ensure they are ready to implement the new limit.
Minister for Transport Darragh O’Brien said: “I am delighted that the ‘Slower Speeds, Safer Roads’ information and awareness campaign has launched. This government is committed to reducing road fatalities and creating safer roads for everyone in Ireland.
“There is no doubt that speeding is a significant contributing factor to many collisions and going slower will benefit us all. By reducing speed limits on many rural local roads from 80km per hour to 60km per hour, the government is taking action to reduce road fatalities and serious injuries.
"These measures are part of a range of initiatives to improve road safety and help us to progress toward our longer-term goal of Vision Zero, as set out in the government’s Road Safety Strategy and its Phase 1 Action Plan.”