Ireland’s Minister for Justice, Helen McEntee TD, has announced an allocation of €9 million in funding for up to 100 new speed cameras as part of Budget 2025.
Last year, Minister McEntee allocated a 20% increase in funding for GoSafe speed cameras, resulting in a total of 9,000 hours of speed monitoring per month across the country for the entirety of 2024.
This investment to support the country’s police force, An Garda Síochána, to roll out more speed cameras will provide for improved enforcement of traffic laws and help to reduce speeding, ultimately saving lives on our roads.
“We have all been shocked by the loss of life on our roads. The most important thing that we can all do is ensure that we practice good road safety and take personal responsibility in keeping others and ourselves safe on our roads,” commented Minister McEntee.
”However, there are still too many people willing to drive without due care, be that by speeding, driving recklessly or driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
“Successful road safety strategies require stakeholders to consider a number of matters that together can save lives: technology, road design, driver behaviour and education, severity of penalties, speed limits, and of course, where all else fails, enforcement.
“We know speed is a significant contributor to road deaths and so it’s vital we leverage technology to make our roads safer for everyone. International experience shows speed cameras lead to drivers reducing speed.”
The location of the static speed safety cameras will be based on fatality and serious injury collision data, alongside speed data and feedback from stakeholders.
Minister McEntee added: “An Garda Síochána has been investing heavily in roads policing activity and related technology; in recruiting additional Gardaí to roads policing; in assigning roads policing activity to every Garda member daily; in high visibility targeted operations, such as on bank holiday weekends; in automatic number plate recognition technology; and now with additional speed camera enforcement capabilities nationwide. This has resulted in an impressive improvement in road policing enforcement during the course of 2024.
“Every preventable road death is a tragedy, and together we need to continue to build on the good work already achieved by An Garda Síochána, as we collectively move toward the goal of reducing serious injuries and deaths on our roads.”
(File picture – Jenoptik)
