Ahead of the national holiday, drivers and all other road users are being reminded to plan ahead and organise a safe way home if socialising over the coming days.

Motorists are urged to take extra care and time to complete their journey over the Christmas period.

For every pedestrian fatality, there were approximately nine serious injuries.

Labour TD for Tipperary Alan Kelly said local authorities are under pressure, but there were significant routes that had been “absolutely destroyed” due to weather

Minister of State Jack Chambers said he wants to bring a comprehensive response following a "shocking" rise in road fatalities

The Minister's comments come after a senior Garda said reducing speed limits on some rural roads should be considered

As of Thursday, there had been 125 fatalities on roads in Ireland in 2023 – a rise of 24 on the same period last year

The figures show that 13 people lost their lives on Irish roads last month, compared with 22 in the same month last year.

The volume of traffic on Irish roads is still below pre-pandemic levels