Three pedestrians and one driver died in four separate tragedies in Galway (where there were two), Carlow and Kildare.

The youngest person to die was 32 years old, while the eldest was 83.

It brings to 147 the number of people that have died in traffic tragedies in Ireland so far this year. That is five more than at the same time last year.

Just one county, Longford, has not recorded a traffic fatality this year.

Politicians, gardaí, the Road Safety Authority (RSA) and road safety campaigners have expressed worries over the number of deaths on Irish roads over the past few months.

There is particular concern over the number of deaths in Galway, where fatalities have now reached 18 for the year.

There were two fatal crashes in Galway over the weekend.

A man in his 30s died when the car he was driving crashed at Lavally, Tuam, at around 4.30am yesterday.

The single-vehicle incident occurred on the L2107 road at Cappadavock.

The man, who was the sole occupant of the car, was pronounced dead at the scene.

Gardaí have appealed for any witnesses to the crash or the movements of the vehicle involved to contact them.

The driver was arrested at the scene of the crash (stock image)

Today’s News in 90 Seconds – Sunday November 2

A post-mortem examination will be conducted at University Hospital Galway (UHG) and a file will be prepared for the Galway coroner.

Less than 36 hours earlier, a pedestrian died outside Loughgeorge in Galway.

The accident occurred at 11:30pm last Friday after a car struck a pedestrian at Peake on the N83 Tuam Road in Loughgeorge.

The pedestrian, a man in his 80s, was pronounced dead at the scene.

A male motorist in his 20s was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Gardaí have appealed for any witnesses or motorists who passed the area with vehicles equipped with dashcams to contact them.

In Kidare, a man died at 3.30pm on Saturday.

The crash occurred between Junctions 8 and 7 eastbound on the N7 motorway at Kill, Co Kildare.

A male pedestrian, aged in his 30s, was seriously injured when he was struck by a bus and was taken to Tallaght University Hospital, where he later died as a result of his injuries.

The bus driver, a man in his 30s, was uninjured, but was treated for shock at the scene.

Two passengers received non-life-threatening injuries.

There was also a fatal crash in Carlow on Saturday afternoon.

That incident involved a car and a pedestrian on the R703 in Ballyroughan Big, Borris, Co Carlow, at 4.30pm.

The pedestrian, a man in his 40s, was pronounced dead at the scene.

A female motorist in her 60s was uninjured, but was treated for shock.

Ireland had 138 road deaths in 2018, which was 29pc below last year’s levels.

Since 2018, road deaths have steadily climbed: 2019 (140), 2020 (146), 2021 (130), 2022 (155), 2023 (184) and 2024 (175).

Almost half of the road deaths over the past 18 months have involved vulnerable road users such as pedestrians, cyclists, bikers and e-scooter riders.

Garda Assistant Commissioner for roads policing, Catharina Gunne, said a major road safety campaign would operate from the October bank holiday weekend to Christmas.

“For motorists, we appeal to you to never drive under the influence of alcohol or drugs, to slow down and to always choose a speed that is appropriate for the driving conditions, to wear your seatbelt and remove any distractions while driving such as mobile phones while driving,” she said.

RSA director of research Michael Rowland urged motorists to be more mindful of driving conditions as evenings get darker.

Susan Gray, founder of Parc road safety group, said she was deeply concern over the mounting road fatality figures.

Ms Gray said the cornerstone of road safety was the strict enforcement of safety regulations and proper resourcing of gardaí.

“There is an undeniable link between Garda Road Policing Unit numbers, enforcement of road safety regulations and the safety of our roads,” she said.

Ms Gray said the priority for the Government should be the provision of maximum resources for the gardaí and better driver education for all road users.