Research: nine serious injuries for every fatality on Irish roads

For every road death in Ireland between 2017 and 2020, there were nine serious injuries, according to new research.

The data, revealed at the Road Safety Authority’s (RSA’s) Annual Academic Lecture, also showed that vulnerable road users – pedestrians, motorcyclists, and cyclists – accounted for over half of all serious injuries (54 percent).

Dublin had the highest number of serious injuries with 131, followed by Cork at 136, Galway 61 and Kildare, 57. Leitrum had the lowest with ten, followed by Sligo with 14.

“There have been over 85,000 serious injuries in Ireland since we began recording them in 1977,” said Sam Waide, Chief Executive of the Road Safety Authority.

“The findings presented at the Academic Lecture add urgency to the targets outlined in the Government Road Safety Strategy 2021-2030 to reduce serious injuries and deaths on Irish roads by 50% by 2030.”