*Country Profile

Ireland

ROAD SAFETY

This document is part of a series of 30 country profiles: one for each Member Stateof the EU 27 and three EFTA countries (Iceland, Norway, and Switzerland). The
purpose of this series is to provide an overview of the road safety situation in a specificcountry.
Contract:

This document has been prepared in the framework of the EC
Service Contract MOVE/C2/SER/2022-55/SI2.888215 with
National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), SWOV Institutefor Road Safety Research and Kuratorium für Verkehrssicherheit(KFV).

Version:February 8, 2024

Authors:

Katerina Folla, Konstantinos Kaselouris (NTUA)Internal Reviewers: Ingrid van Schagen, Govert Schermers (SWOV)
Referencing:

Reproduction of this document is allowed with due
acknowledgement. Please refer to the document as follows:
European Commission (2023), Country Profile Ireland. Road
SafetyObservatory.
Brussels,
EuropeanCommission,
Directorate General for Transport.

Disclaimer
Whilst every effort has been made to ensure that the matter presented in thisdocument is relevant, accurate and up to date, the (sub)contractors cannot accept
any liability for any error or omission, or reliance on part or all of the content inanother context.
Any information and views set out in this document are those of the author(s) and do
not necessarily reflect the official opinion of the European Commission. The
Commission does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this study.
Neither the Commission nor any person acting on the Commission’s behalf may beheld responsible for the use that may be made of the information contained therein.
© European Commission, 2023.The EU does not own the copyright in relation to thefollowing elements:- Cover page photos, © www.shutterstock.com

C ount ry Profi leIrelandContents
1.

Highlights ........................................................................... 4

2.

Road Safety Outcomes ......................................................... 5

3.

4.

5.

6.

2.1

Road Safety Trends ......................................................... 5

2.2

Risk Figures .................................................................... 7

2.3

Transport Mode ............................................................... 7

2.4

Age and Gender .............................................................. 9

2.5

Area and Road Type ....................................................... 11

2.6Time Period ................................................................... 12

2.7

Lighting and Weather Conditions ...................................... 13

Safety Performance Indicators .............................................. 14
3.1Road User Behaviour ...................................................... 14

3.2

Vehicle Safety ................................................................ 15

3.3

Enforcement .................................................................. 15Road Safety Policy and Measures .......................................... 16
4.1

National Road Safety Strategy.......................................... 16

4.2

Traffic Laws and Regulations ............................................ 16

4.3

Driving Licences ............................................................. 18

4.4Road Infrastructure ........................................................ 18

Structure and Culture .......................................................... 19
5.1Country Characteristics ................................................... 19

5.2

Structure of Road Safety Management .............................. 20

5.3

Self-declared behaviour & Attitudes .................................. 21

Notes ................................................................................ 22
6.1

Data Sources ................................................................. 22

6.2

Definitions ..................................................................... 24

3

C ount ry Profi leIreland

1. Highlights
Road Safety Outcomes• In 2021, 137 people were killed, while in 2019 1,506 wereseriously injured in road crashes in Ireland.
• Out of 27 EU countries, Ireland had the 4th lowest number offatalities per million inhabitants in 2021.
• Compared to the EU average, the distribution of fatalities in
Ireland showed a high proportion of car occupants.
• Since 2012, the number of fatalities showed a lower decrease
compared to the EU on average.
Road Safety Performance Indicators• The use rates of seat belts and helmets are higher in Ireland thanthe EU average.
• Self-reported drink-driving at the EU average.
• The passenger car fleet is considerably younger than the EU
average.
Road Safety Policy Measures & Country Characteristics• National road safety legislation in Ireland, in most cases, reflects
the situation in the majority of EU countries.
• There is no age restriction to transport children on motorcycles
in Ireland.
• Population density in Ireland is lower than the EU average, but
the road density is higher than the EU on average.

4

C ount ry Profi leIreland

2. Road Safety Outcomes
2.1 Road Safety Trends
In Ireland, a total of 137 people were killed in 2021 a, while 1,506 wereseriously injured in road crashes in 2019. Over the period between
2012-2021, the number of fatalities in Ireland decreased by 16%,
which is much less than the European Union reduction (25%). On theother hand, the number of serious injuries increased almost 2 times(99%) over the same period.
In terms of mortality rates, in 2021, 27 road fatalities per million
inhabitants were recorded, which is well below the EU average (45).
It is noted that there is a break in the time series for serious injuries inthe year 2014, due to a change in the way road traffic collision data
was provided in Ireland (i.e., a change from a paper based to electronicsystem). This means that serious injury values from 2014 are notdirectly comparable with previous years, thus, in the respective tablesof the section Road Safety Outcomes, the trend between 2014 and2019 (latest available year) is presented. This break does not affect thetrend figures for fatalities.
At the time of the development of the current Country Profile, the latest
available disaggregate crash data for Ireland in the CARE databaserefer to 2019.
Table 1. Number of fatalities and serious injuries, 2012 and 2021
Fatalities
Serious Injuries*

2012
163
474

* Serious injuries data for 2019

2021
137
1,506

a

Trend
-16%

EU trend-25%

It is noted that the global COVID-19 pandemic had an impact on the CARE data for2020 and 2021 for many European countries. Traffic volumes dropped sharply during
the pandemic due to traffic restrictions, which was associated with a significant drop
in road traffic crashes and fatalities.

5C ount ry Profi leIrelandFigure 1. Mortality rate development, 2012 – 2021

Fatalities per million
inhabitants

70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
IrelandEuropean Union

Serious injuries per million
inhabitants

Figure 2. Evolution of serious injuries per million inhabitants, 2012 2019
350
300
250
200
150
100
50
0

2012

2013

2014

2015
Ireland

6

2016

2017

2018

2019

C ount ry Profi leIreland

2.2 Risk Figures
Figure 3. Mortality rates by country, 2021

Fatalities per million
inhabitants

100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30

EU = 45
27

20
10
0

Taking into account the number of vehicles, Ireland also performs
better compared to the EU average. The rate of 0.49 fatalities per
10,000 registered vehicles in Ireland is below the EU average (0.63).

Fatalities per 10000 registeredvehiclesFigure 4. Fatalities per thousand registered vehicles, 2021
2.50
2.00
1.50
1.00

EU = 0.63

0.49

0.50
0.00

2.3 Transport Mode
In 2019 b, car occupants accounted for more than half (58%) of roadtraffic fatalities in Ireland. This percentage is much higher than thatobserved in the European Union as a whole (44%). Powered twoDifferent shares of transport modes in the casualty numbers, as shown in thissection, may also reflect differences in the size of the vehicle fleet and the usage ofdifferent modes rather than a difference in safety level.
b

7

C ount ry Profi leIrelandwheelers and cyclists on the other hand account for 17% of road
fatalities, which is well below the respective EU proportion (27%).
Over the period 2012-2019, there has been a slight decrease in road
fatalities in Ireland for all transport modes. The highest decrease wasrecorded for powered two wheelers (16%).
Of those vulnerable road users (VRUs: pedestrians, cyclists andpowered two-wheelers) that were fatally injured in Ireland in crashes
involving either passenger cars or buses/coaches or lorries and heavy
goods vehicles, 65% were involved in a crash with a passenger car, and
28% were involved in a crash with a lorry or heavy goods vehicle.
Also, the number of fatalities in single vehicle crashes in Irelanddecreased more than in the EU.
Table 2: Number of fatalities by transport mode, 2012 and 2019
2012
1
90
8
2
10
4
29
19
163

Bus/coach occupants
Car occupants
Cyclists
Heavy goods vehicles
Lorries, under 3.5t
Other/unknown
Pedestrians
Powered two-wheelers
Total

2019
0
81
8
6

Trend
-10%
-7%
-16%
-14%

2
27
16
140

EU trend
+14%
-18%
-3%
-17%
-11%
+2%
-15%
-11%
-14%

Figure 5. Distribution of road fatalities by transport mode, 2019

European
Union

44%

Ireland

5%

58%
0%

20%

18%

9%

4% 11%
40%

60%

20%

6%

19%

80%

Car occupants

HGVs, Lorries and buses

Powered two-wheelers

Cyclists

Pedestrians

Other/unknown

8

3%

1%
100%

C ount ry Profi leIreland

Table 3: Number of serious injuries by transport mode, 2014 and 20192014

Bus/coach occupants
Car occupants
Cyclists
Heavy goods vehicles
Lorries, under 3.5t
Other/unknown
Pedestrians
Powered two-wheelers
Total

2019
5
613
305
45
0
15
301
222
1,506

2
349
106
4
18
9
180
87
755

Trend
+76%
+188%
+67%
+67%
+155%
+99%

Table 4: Number of VRU fatalities in crashes involving passenger cars,
buses or coaches and lorries or heavy goods vehicles, 2012 and 2019
Crashes involving busesor coaches
Crashes involving cars
Crashes involving lorries
or heavy goods vehicles

2012

2019

Trend

EU trend

4

3

-

-22%

30

28

-7%

-11%

9

12

-

-10%

Table 5: Number of fatalities in single vehicle crashes by transportmode, 2012 and 2019
Bus/coach occupants
Car occupants
Cyclists
Heavy goods vehicles
Lorries, under 3.5t
Other/unknown
Powered two-wheelers
Total

2012

2019
0
40
1
3

0
76
17
6
6
5
24
134

1
3
48

Trend
-47%
-94%
-88%
-64%

EU trend
-4%
-21%
+34%
-49%
-5%
-7%
-10%
-16%

2.4 Age and Gender
The distribution of road fatalities across age groups in Ireland issomewhat different than that of the EU, with a slightly higher share offatalities aged from 25 to 49 years old and for the males, a slightly
lower share of fatalities between 50 and 64 years old. Over the period
2012-2021, the number of fatalities among females dropped for all age
groups. For males, there was only a drop for the 18-24 year olds.

9C ount ry Profi leIrelandFigure 6. Distribution of road fatalities by age and gender, 2019

Female6%European Union

10%

23%

18%

42%

1%

3%
Ireland

6%

26%

0%
<18

23%

20%
18-24

60%

40%
25-49

43%

50-64

65+

80%

100%

Unknown

Male
4%
European Union
Ireland

37%

13%
5%
0%
<18

20%

42%

20%
18-24

22%
14%
60%

40%
25-49

24% 1%

65+

50-64

80%

19%
100%

Unknown

Table 6: Number of fatalities by age and gender, 2012 and 2019
Female
<18
18-24
25-49
50-64
65+
Unknown
Total
Male
<18
18-24
25-49
50-64
65+
Unknown
Total

2012

2019

Trend

EU trend

1
7
19
7
19
1
54

1
2
9
8
15
0
35

-53%
-21%
-35%

-60%
-84%
-69%
+8%
-58%
-18%

8
28
42
13
17
0
108

5
21
44
15
20
0
105

-25%
+5%
+15%
+18%
-3%

-69%
-89%
-72%
+60%
-4%
-14%

10

C ount ry Profi leIreland

Table 7: Number of serious injuries by age and gender, 2014 and 2019
Female
<18
18-24
25-49
50-64
65+
Unknown
Total
Male
<18
18-24
25-49
50-64
65+
Unknown
Total

2014

2019

Trend

22
42
109
43
37
1
254

57
65
173
102
111
1
509

+159%
+55%
+59%
+137%
+200%
+100%

67
85
224
74
46
3
499

118
147
443
190
97
1
996

+76%
+73%
+98%
+157%
+111%
+100%

2.5 Area and Road TypeThe majority of road fatalities in Ireland occurred on rural roads (72%)
which is much higher than in the EU average (53%). The percentage offatalities that occurred on urban roads in Ireland (23%) is much lower
than the EU average (39%). The percentage of car occupant fatalities
inside urban areas was much higher than the respective EU percentage.
Table 8: Number of fatalities by road type, 2012 and 2019
Motorway
Rural
Urban
Unknown
Total

2012
5
112
46
0
163

2019
7
101
32
0
140

11

Trend
-10%
-30%
-14%

EU trend
+4%
-17%
-13%
-88%
-14%

C ount ry Profi leIrelandFigure 7. Distribution of road fatalities by road type, 2019

European
Union

9%

53%

Ireland 5%
0%

39%
72%

10%

20%

30%

23%

40%

50%

60%

Motorway

Rural

Urban

70%

80%

90%

100%

Table 9: Number of serious injuries by road type, 2014 and 2019
Motorway
Rural
Urban

2014
24
371
360

2019
44
651
811

Trend
+83%
+75%
+125%

755

1,506

+99%

Unknown
Total

Figure 8. Distribution of road fatalities inside urban areas by typetransport mode, 2019

European
Union

25%

Ireland

2%

19%

13%

50%

0%

20%

37%

13%

40%

3%

60%

3%

34%

80%

100%

Car occupants

HGVs, Lorries and BusesPowered two-wheelers

Cyclists

Pedestrians

Other/unknown

2.6 Time Period
The distribution of fatalities by day of the week and time of the day isvery similar to that of the EU. Most fatalities occurred during working
weekdays. Over the period 2012-2021, Ireland showed a morefavourable downward trend regarding night-time fatalities during theworking week than the EU average.

12

C ount ry Profi leIreland

Table 10: Number of fatalities by time period, 2012 and 2019

Weekend - Daytime

2012
69
18
49

2019
72
12
33

Trend
+4%
-33%
-33%

EU trend
-13%
-15%
-13%

Weekend - Night-time

27

23

-15%

-21%

Unknown
Total

0

0

-

-79%

163

140

-14%

-14%

Working week - Daytime
Working week- Night-time

Figure 9. Distribution of road fatalities by time period, 2019

European
Union

56%

Ireland

9%

51%
0%

9%

20%
40%
Working week - Daytime
Weekend - Daytime

23%
24%

60%
80%
Working week- Night-time
Weekend - Night-time

11%
16%
100%

2.7 Lighting and Weather Conditions
The majority of fatalities both in Ireland and in the EU are during
daylight and with dry weather conditions. Contrary to the EU, over theperiod 2012-2019, Ireland recorded a slight increase in crash fatalities
during raining conditions.
Table 11: Number of fatalities by lighting and weather conditions, 2012
and 2019
Lighting Conditions
Daylight
Twilight
Darkness
Weather Conditions
Dry
Rain
Other/Unknown

2012

2019

Trend

EU trend

89
73

82
58

-8%
-21%

-21%
-23%
-32%

130
28
5

106
30
4

-18%
+7%
-20%

-13%
-12%
-18%

13

C ount ry Profi leIreland

3. Safety Performance Indicators
3.1 Road User Behaviour
Table 12: Road Safety Performance Indicators, 2022 or latest available
year
IrelandEU

Speeding (2021)% of passenger cars travelling within speed limits1
Motorways
88.4
c

-

Rural Roads

80.5

-

Urban Roads

25.4

-

Front

99.0

93.3

Rear

93.0

75.5

67.0

67.0

98.8

97.0

/

94.4

41.7

37.8

8.0

11.8

93.7

94.8

Seat belt & CRS use rates (%)1,4

Child restraint systems
Helmet use rates (%)

1

PTW driver
PTW passenger
CyclistDUI of Alcohol(self-reported)3% car drivers have driven at least
once in the last 30 days over thelegal limit
Driver Distraction4% of drivers not using hand-heldmobile device/phone while driving

Sources: 1Baseline project, 2ETSC (2022), 3ESRA3 project (2024), 4national sources

An EU average is not available for speeding, due to different legal speed limits among
countries, which does not allow for a straightforward comparison. Please also notethat for some Safety Performance Indicators of Section 3, the EU average is based ona small number of EU Member States with available data (see Section 6.1).
c

14

C ount ry Profi leIreland

3.2 Vehicle Safety
Table 13: Vehicle Safety Performance Indicators, 2019
% of new passenger cars rated
with 4 EuroNCAP stars and above1
Average age of passenger car fleet(years)2

Ireland

EU

/

83.6

8.6

11.8

Sources: 1Baseline project, 2ACEA (2022)

3.3 Enforcement
Table 14: Number of traffic police tickets per thousand population,
2020
Tickets per 1,000 population
Speeding
Non-use of seat-belt
Illegal use of mobile phone
Driving above legal alcohol limits

Ireland
36.5
1.8
4.9
0.1

Source: ETSC (2022)

15

EU
139.7
5.7
4.4
1.9

C ount ry Profi leIreland

4. Road Safety Policy and Measures
4.1 National Road Safety Strategy
Table 15: National road safety strategy and targets
Timeframe
Lead Authority

Ireland2021-2030 (3 phases)
Road Safety Authority (RSA) developed the strategy, in
consultation with key Irish road safety stakeholders and the
Irish public

Targets
Fatalities
Serious injuries
Baseline Year
SPIs
Link
Source: national sources-50% by 2030, -15% by 2024
-50% by 2030, -10% by 2024
Average 2017-2019
No targets on SPI
https://www.rsa.ie/about/safety-strategy-2021-2030

4.2 Traffic Laws and Regulations
National road safety legislation in Ireland is different in several aspects
from compared to most EU countries. The maximum speed limit onrural roads (100 km/h) is higher than in most other countries and the
maximum speed on motorways (120 km/h) is lower. Furthermore,unlike most other countries there is no age restriction to transportchildren on motorcycles in Ireland.
Table 16: National road safety legislation
Speed limits forpassenger cars (km/h)
Urban roads
Rural roads
Motorways
Allowed BAC levels (g/l)
General population
Novice drivers

Ireland50(special speed limits:
30km/h or 60km/h)
100 (national roads)
80 (regional and local roads)
120
0.5
0.2

Professional drivers

0.2

Seatbelt requirement
Drivers
Front Passenger
Rear Passenger

Yes
Yes
Yes

16

Most common in EU

50: 26/27
90: 17/27
130: 14/27
0.5: 19/27
0.2: 12/27, 0.0: 9/27
0.2: 10/27, 0.0: 9/27,
0.5: 6/27
Yes: 27/27
Yes: 27/27
Yes: 27/27

C ount ry Profi leIreland

Ireland

Most common in EU

Child restraint systems
CRS required

Up to 36 kg / 150 cm

Children in front seats

Allowed in CRS d

Children on motorcycles

Not restricted

Helmet requirement
Powered Two Wheelers
All roads
All engines
Cyclists
Age restriction
Mobile phone use
Hand-held phone use
allowedHands-free phone use
allowed
E-scooters e

up to 135 cm: 11/27,
up to 150 cm: 11/27
Allowed in CRS: 22/27
Prohibited under certain
age/height: 18/27

Yes
Yes
Yes
No (recommended)No

Yes: 27/27
Yes: 27/27
Yes: 25/27
Not mandatory: 19/27
Not restricted: 16/27

No

No: 26/27

Yes

Yes: 27/27

Not restricted: 9/27,
Allowed from 14 years: 6/27
Max. speed limit
25: 18/27
Helmet required
Not required: 12/27
Allowed on road lanes
Yes: 18/27
Allowed on pavements
No: 13/27, Yes: 9/27
Allowed on bicycle paths
Yes: 21/27
Sources: EC (2023), WHO (2018), FERSI (2020), National sources
Age restriction-

It is noted that it is illegal to use a rearward-facing child car seat in a passenger
seat protected by an airbag.
eE-scooter regulations in Ireland have not come into force yet but due in the very
near future.
d17

C ount ry Profi leIreland4.3 Driving Licences
Table 17: Policies and regulations related to driving licences
Ireland

Most common in EU

Novice Drivers
Accompanied driving
Probation period for novice
drivers
Renewal Procedure
Renewal procedure (compulsory)
Renewal interval (Age)Medical requirements
Source: National sourcesNo
2 years
Yes
Under 60 years old:
every 10 years
Above 67 years old:
every 1 to 3 years
Yes

17 years: 13/27,
No: 7/27
2 years: 7/27,
3 years: 5/27
Yes: 26/27
Εvery 10years: 13/27,
Εvery 15years: 9/27
Yes: 22/27

4.4 Road Infrastructure
Table 18: Policies and regulations related to road infrastructure
Ireland

Most common in EU
Yes: 10/27,
Partial:17/27

Audits or star rating required for
new road infrastructure

PartialInspections / star rating of existing
roads

Yes

Yes:26/27

Design standards for the safety ofpedestrians / cyclists

Yes

Yes:25/27

Investments to upgrade high risk
locations

Yes

Yes:20/27

Yes

Yes:23/27

Yes

Yes: 21/27

Policies & investment in urban
public transport
Policies promoting walking andcycling
Source: WHO (2018)18

C ount ry Profi leIreland5. Structure and Culture
5.1 Country Characteristics
Population density in Ireland is lower than the EU average but the roaddensity is higher than the EU on average. Ireland’s GDP per capita is
above that of the EU.
Table 19: Country Characteristics, 2021
Ireland
Demographics2
Population (inhabitants)
Population density (inh./km2)% children (0-17)% adults (18-64)% elderly (65+)% of urban population
Economic Data2
GDP per capita (euro)
Infrastructure1
Country Area (km2)Road network length (km)Road density (km/km2)% of motorways% GDP spent to road infrastructure3
Vehicle Fleet1
Vehicles per population% of passenger cars
% of motorcycles% of HGVs% of buses
Exposure1
Modal split of passenger transport onland (passenger-km in %):- Passenger cars
- Bus/coach/Metro/Tram
Modal split of freight transport on land
(tonne-km in %):- Road- RailEnvironment1
CO2 emissions from road transport(million tonnes)
Share of road transport emissions in
total transport emissions (%)
Sources: 1EC (2023b), 2Eurostat, 3OECD (2023)

19

EU

5,006,324
72.6
23.9%
61.4%
14.8%
64.3%

447,000,548
109.0
18.2
61.6
20.3
75.2

86,49032,56069,947103,182
1.5
0.96
0.2

4,225,134
4,473,380
1.1
1.67
0.4

0.54
83.6
1.7
14.3
0.4

0.73
77.3
11.4
11.1
0.2

85.5
13.1

85.2
8.7

99.4
0.6

74.6
16.4

10.2

739.8

80.4

76.3

C ount ry Profi leIreland5.2 Structure of Road Safety Management
Table 20: Road Safety Management Structure
Key Functions

Key Actors

Formulation of nationalroad safety strategy-

Department of transport
Road Safety Authority (RSA)

Monitoring of the roadsafety development-

RSA
Road Safety Transformation Programme Board
Oireachtas Committee on Transport
Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII)

Improvements in roadinfrastructure-

TII: responsible for national roads
Local Authorities: non-national roads

Improvement invehicles-

RSA
Department of Transport

Improvement in roaduser education-

Nationwide Road Safety Education Service within RSA
Department of Transport
Health and Safety Authority

Publicity campaigns-

RSA
Department of Transport
Society of the Irish Motor Industry (SIMI)

Enforcement of traffic
laws-

PoliceOther relevant actors-

Medical Bureau of Road Safety (MBRS)

Source: National sources20

C ount ry Profi leIreland5.3 Self-declared behaviour & Attitudes
Table 21: Self-declared behaviour and attitudes
Ranking among
EU countries

Ireland

EU Average

10.2

17.0

6/18

47.1

55.7

4/18

10.9

17.2

3/18

15.8
30.8

16.8
34.4

11/18
14/18

15.3

15.0

9/18

76.5

76.6

9/18

54.2

38.3

4/18

79.7

60.1

3/18

Risk Taking% at least once in the past 30 days
- drive after drinking alcohol- drive faster than the speed limit
inside urban areas- transport children under 150cm
without using CRS
Enforcement Perception% of likely of being checked for- drink-driving- respecting speed limits- using of hand-held mobile phone
while driving
Support for policy measures% of support to a legal obligation to- zero tolerance for all novice
drivers- limiting the speed limit to
30km/h in all built-up areas(except on main thoroughfares)- requiring all cyclists to wear ahelmetSource: ESRA3 project (2024)

21

C ount ry Profi leIreland6. Notes
6.1 Data Sources
CARE (Community database on road accidents in Europe)
All information in section 1 of the Country Profile is based on the CARE
database. The full glossary of definitions of variables used in this Reportis available at EC Mobility & Transport - Road Safety webpage.
The European average is based on the average of the 27 EU countries.
EU trends and aggregated figures are based on the most recent figuresavailable (2021). In case of missing values, the EU averages andaggregated data were produced by imputing figures based on data fromprevious years. For values less than 10, the trend is not shown since it
may be due to randomness. Also, due to missing data on serious
injuries for some EU countries, EU total/average is not calculated. Dateof extraction: July 2023
ACEA (2022)
European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association. The automobile
industry - Pocket guide 2022/2023. ACEA, 2022.
https://www.acea.auto/files/ACEA_Pocket_Guide_2022-2023.pdf
Data on the average age of the passenger car fleet come from the
ACEA. The European average is based on the average of 24 EU
countries. Date of extraction: July 2023
Baseline project
Information in section 3 is based on Key Performance Indicators
collected within the Baseline project.
https://road-safety.transport.ec.europa.eu/statistics-andanalysis/data-and-analysis/key-performance-indicators-kpis_en
Alternative sources were used for countries with no available data in
the Baseline project (e.g., ETSC, national sources). The European
average is based on the average of 17 EU countries for speeding, 23
EU countries for seat-belt use, 13 EU countries for CRS use, 14 EU
countries for helmet use, 14 EU countries for driver distraction and 13
EU countries for vehicle safety. Date of extraction: July 2023
European Commission 2023
Data were retrieved from EC Mobility & Transport - Road Safety
website:https://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/travel/drivingabroad/road-rules-and-safety/index_en.htm
Date of extraction: July 2023
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C ount ry Profi leIrelandEuropean Commission – Statistical Pocketbook 2023 (b)European Commission, Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport.
EU transport in figures – Statistical pocketbook 2023. Publications
Office of the European Union, 2023. Date of extraction: November 2023
https://data.europa.eu/doi/10.2832/319371
Eurostat
Data were retrieved from Eurostat: https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat
The European average is based on the average of the 27 EU countries.
Date of extraction: July 2023
ESRA project
Information in sections 3 (drink-driving) and 5.3 is based on data fromthe ESRA 3 (E-Survey of Road Users’ Attitudes) project (2018 & 2019).
https://www.esranet.eu/
The European average is the average of 17 European countries. In the
ranking of the countries in Table 21, Switzerland is also included. Dateof extraction: November 2023
ETSC
Information in section 3 is based on data from the following ETSC
report. The European average is the average of 24 European countries
for all indicators, except the alcohol related tickets (20 countries).
European Transport Safety Council. How traffic law enforcement cancontribute to safer roads. PIN Flash Report 42. ETSC, 2022.
https://etsc.eu/how-traffic-law-enforcement-can-contribute-to-saferroads-pin-flash-42/
FERSI (2020)
Kamphuis, K. & van Schagen, I. (2020) E-scooters in Europe: legal
status, usage and safety. Results of a survey in FERSI countries. FERSI
paper. https://fersi.org/. Date of extraction: July 2023
IRTAD (International Traffic Safety Data and Analysis Group)
Data related to the percentage of GDP spent to road infrastructure(Section
5.1)
isretrieved
from
the
OECD
database:https://stats.oecd.org/. Date of extraction: July 2023
WHO
Data were retrieved from the WHO Global Status Report on Road
Safety, published in 2018. The European average is based on the
average of the 27 EU countries.
https://www.who.int/violence_injury_prevention/road_safety_status/
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C ount ry Profi leIreland

2018/en/. Date of extraction: July 2023

6.2 Definitions
Road Crash
Any crash involving at least one road vehicle in motion on a public roador private road to which the public has right of access, resulting in atleast one injured or killed person. Data are based on police reports andthere may be an underestimate because of underreporting (especiallyfor non-fatal crashes and crashes not involving a motorised vehicle).
Fatalities
Total number of persons fatally injured within 30 days of the roadcrash; correction factors applied when needed. Confirmed suicide andnatural death are not included.
Seriously injured (at 30 days)
Total number of persons seriously injured corrected by correction
factors when needed. Injured (although not killed) in the road crashand hospitalized at least 24 hours. The definition of “serious injury”
varies considerably among EU countries, affecting, thus, the reliabilityof cross-country comparisons.
Lorry, under 3.5tn
Goods vehicle under 3.5t maximum gross weight. Smaller motor
vehicles used only for the transport of goods.
Heavy Goods Vehicles
Goods vehicle over 3.5t maximum gross weight. Larger motor vehicles
used only for the transport of goods.
Powered two-wheelers
Driver or passenger of either a moped (two or three wheeled vehicle
equipped with engine size of maximum 50cc and maximum speed that
does not exceed 45 km/h. A moped can also have an electric motor.
Speed pedelecs and electric powered bicycles that offer pedal
assistance up to 45 km/h, also belong to this category of vehicles.) ora motorcycle (motor vehicle with two or three wheels, with an engine
size of more than 50 cc. A motorcycle can also have an electric motor.).
Working week – Daytime
Monday to Friday 6.00 a.m. to 9.59 p.m.
Working week – Night-time
Monday 10 p.m. to Tuesday 5.59 a.m.
Tuesday 10 p.m. to Wednesday 5.59 a.m.
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C ount ry Profi leIrelandWednesday 10 p.m. to Thursday 5.59 a.m.
Thursday 10 p.m. to Friday 5.59 a.m.
Weekend – Daytime
Saturday to Sunday 6.00 a.m. to 9.59 p.m.
Weekend – Night-time
Friday 10 p.m. to Saturday 5.59 a.m.
Saturday 10 p.m. to Sunday 5.59 a.m.
Sunday 10 p.m. to Monday 5.59 a.m.
Speeding
The percentage of passenger cars travelling within legal maximum
speed limits based on roadside measurements during daytime.
Seat belt & CRS use rates
The percentage of passenger car occupants using seat belts and child
restraint systems (CRS) based on roadside observations during
daytime.
Helmet use rates
The percentage of powered two-wheeler riders and cyclists using
helmets based on roadside observations during daytime. Helmet use
rates for cyclists in some countries concern only urban roads. Please
note that in some countries, the use of helmets is not obligatory for
cyclists (see Table 16).
DUI of Alcohol
The percentage of car drivers who have driven at least once in the last
30 days over the legal alcohol limit based on a self-reported survey.
Driver Distraction
The percentage of drivers not using a hand-held mobile device/phone
while driving based on roadside surveys during daytime on working
days. The vehicle types included are passenger cars, light goods
vehicles and buses/coaches.
Explanations of symbols in tables:/ : not available- : not applicable (e.g. calculation cannot be performed)

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