An open appeal to road users

As the fine weather is set to continue this week, we appeal to road users to take care. Two more people have lost their lives in motorbike accidents since this piece was penned on Tuesday...

Over the past month, The Anglo-Celt have sadly had to report on six fatalities on the roads of Cavan, Monaghan and the surrounding counties, with one particularly tragic 24-hour period accounting for two of these incidents.

When the public hears of road fatality being reported in the media, an occurrence that seems to happen with a devastating frequency, it can be easy to overlook the incident, dismissing it as another statistic from a nameless, faceless event that will have no real impact on them.

However, behind each of these stats is a real person, who was leading a real life, with their own real hopes, dreams, and intentions. As well as that, they leave behind a devastated family, group of friends and wider community who will always mourn the loss of their husband/wife/brother/sister/child/friend or colleague. Think of the empty space at the table, the first Christmas, birthday or family event without the special person.

To date, there have been three deaths on Cavan roads, and a total of 68 deaths on Irish roads. Nationally this is an increase of six over the same period last year, and 15 more than the same period in 2021.

With an upturn in weather conditions expected over the coming weeks, more vehicles than ever will take to our roads as people enjoy the sunshine, and with more cars, there will be more road accidents and, tragically, more fatalities.

So with this in mind, take this as a plea to all road users to exercise more caution when you get behind the wheel. Always wear a seatbelt, never use your phone when driving, stay below the speed limit and never ever drink and drive.

We always think something bad will never happen to us, but nobody is exempt. Do the right thing.

It could save your life.