Westmeath’s roads are some of the most dangerous in the country, boasting the second highest rate of road deaths, according to the latest figures released by the Road Safety Authority.
There were 2.1 road collisions per 1,000 of Westmeath’s population in 2007, second only to Louth which had the highest rate at 2.3. This translates to 3.8 collisions per 1,000 registered vehicles.
The report, entitled ‘Road Collisions Facts', reveals that 14 people were killed on Westmeath’s roads in 2007. This figure is down from the previous year when 18 people lost their lives.
A total of 240 people were injured in Westmeath in the same year, representing a substantial increase on 2006 figures.
When it comes to Westmeath’s towns, the rate of collisions is also high. In 2007, there were 1.5 collisions per 1,000 people in the town, while in Mullingar there were 2.3, one of the highest rates among towns of similar population.
The report pointed to Westmeath, Longford, and Leitrim as the three counties whose roads are most dangerous to drive.
Overall in 2007, 338 people were killed on Irish roads, 7,806 people were injured of which 860 were seriously injured, and 23,770 collisions involved property or material damage only. Gardai attended over 29,000 motor vehicle traffic collisions over the year.
The fatality rate per million population was 78 in 2007, a decrease of 9 per cent from the 2006 rate of 86. The report also found that the estimated cost of all road collisions reported to, and recorded by, Gardai in 2007 was €1.38 billion.
