Galway Cycling Campaign -Feachtas Rothaiochta na Gaillimhe

Speeds of Traffic on Irish Roads

Source: RS 453 Free Speeds on Urban Roads, National Roads Authority as synopsised in Local Authority News, July 2000.

Principal Findings

Urban National Roads (standard limit 30 mph)

94% of cars exceed the 30 mph limit and 49% travel at more than 40 mph.
Average free speed of cars is 41 mph.
85% of rigid vehicles exceed the 30 mph speed limit and 22% travel at more than 40 mph.
89% of articulated vehicles exceed the 30 mph speed limit and 26% travel in excess of 40 mph.
Average free speed of articulated and rigid vehicles at 30 mph speed limit is 37 mph.

Urban Arterial Roads (standard limit 30 mph)

Average free speed of cars within the 30 mph zone is 45 mph.
99% of cars exceeded the 30 mph speed limit.
72% were travelling at in excess of 40 mph in the 30 mile zone.

Urban Residential Roads

68% of cars found to be speeding with:

58% travelling between 30 and 40 mph
10% travelling at speeds greater than 40 mph.

Rural Roads

Cars:

52% of cars exceed the 60 mph speed limit on Dual Carriageways
51% of cars exceed the 60 mph speed limit on National Primary Two Lane Roads.

Large rigid and articulated vehicles (in theory restricted to travelling at 50 mph):

Rigid vehicles 66% exceed 50 mph
Articulated Vehicles 75% exceed 50 mph.

The energy of, and injuries caused by, any moving car are proportional to the square of the speed. For impacts with pedestrians the following speed/death ratios are available. A pedestrian hit by a car at 40mph has only a 15% chance of surviving. At 30mph this chance increases to 55%. But at 20mph the chance of survival increases to 95% [1] . The figures for cyclists can be assumed to be broadly similar. Ireland currently has the highest child pedestrian death rate and the third highest pedestrian death rate in Europe.

The Galway Cycling Campaign can be contacted c/o the One World Centre, The Halls, Quay St, Galway

[1] 'Killing Speed and Saving Lives', U.K. Department of Transport (1997)