Cork city councillors urge motorists to slow down as schools return

Cork city councillors have appealed to motorists to slow down, as new figures from RSA show that there have been nearly 180 collisions which resulted in serious injuries in the city in the last five years.

Road Safety Authority of Ireland (RSA) data recently provided to Green Party councillor Oliver Moran showed that from 2020 to 2022, there were 11 fatal collisions in Cork city, and 179 serious injuries as a result of a collision.

There were 33 collisions which resulted in serious injuries in 2020, 35 in 2021, 38 in 2023 and 35 in 2024.

The fatality statistics cover where at least one person is killed as a result of the collision and the death occurs within 30 days, meaning that the 11 fatal collisions could equate to multiple fatalities.

Fatal collisions doubled from two in 2023 to four last year. There were five fatal collisions in the city in 2020, and none in either 2021 or 2022.

Mr Moran told The Echo: “We become numb to statistics like this, but each of those represents someone who was loved and had a family. No one of us ever wants to hear the news that one of our loved ones is never coming home again or that their lives are changed forever.

“Everyone can be stressed on the road, but residents from every neighbourhood in the city appeal for motorists to slow down and take more care.” 

He continued: “Cork City Council has a role as well. We need to quickly change the way we think about streets and traffic. The goal isn't to get as many motorists through as quickly as possible.

“It's to make sure everyone has a safe place to live, to work, to play, to go to school. The way we design streets and junctions, the speed limits we put in place, all have a factor in that.” 

Cork city and county combined saw a 30% increase in the tally for fatalities as a result of traffic collisions in Cork last year, up from rising from 14 in 2023 to 18.

A recent report issued by the RSA showed that there were eight fatalities in Cork in the first six months of this year.

Labour councillor and chair of the Transport Committee Peter Horgan has also called on motorists to drive more carefully, especially in school zones ahead of schools reopening.

Mr Horgan said that recent AXA Insurance data shows that young drivers are 85% more likely to be involved in road accidents than older drivers, while national surveys show that over half of drivers exceed urban speed limits, while on motorways and rural roads, around one quarter exceed legal limits.

He told The Echo: “Every August brings a surge of traffic and a return of our children to school. It’s vital that drivers slow down, particularly through school zones. The risk isn’t just theoretical—young drivers are significantly more likely to be involved in crashes, and even a few kilometres per hour above the limit puts children’s lives in serious danger.

“That’s why I’ve long called for enhanced enforcement measures in Cork—like traffic cameras which have already proven effective in Dublin—and the continuation of existing safety infrastructure such as those at Dunkettle and Bloomfield.

“Alongside enforcement, we must redouble efforts on designing and delivering pedestrian crossings, as part of our broader rapid-deployment interventions across the city.”