Skip to main content

Ireland gets up to speed with €9m for enforcement cameras

"Speed cameras lead to drivers reducing speed," says minister for justice
By Adam Hill October 15, 2024 Read time: 2 mins
Location of the static speed cameras will be based on fatality and serious injury collision data (© David Fowler | Dreamstime.com)

The Irish government is allocating €9 million in funding for up to 100 new speed cameras as part of Budget 2025.

"We know speed is a significant contributor to road deaths and so it’s vital we leverage technology to make our roads safer for everyone," says minister for justice Helen McEntee. "International experience shows speed cameras lead to drivers reducing speed."

Last year, she allocated a 20% increase in funding for GoSafe speed cameras, resulting in 9,000 hours of speed monitoring per month across Ireland during 2024.

The money will support police service An Garda Síochána to roll out more speed cameras and improve enforcement of traffic laws, the government says.

“We have all been shocked by the loss of life on our roads," McEntee adds. "The most important thing that we can all do is ensure that we practice good road safety and take personal responsibility in keeping others and ourselves safe on our roads.

”However, there are still too many people willing to drive without due care, be that by speeding, driving recklessly or driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

“Successful road safety strategies require stakeholders to consider a number of matters that together can save lives: technology, road design, driver behaviour and education, severity of penalties, speed limits, and of course, where all else fails, enforcement."

Location of the static speed cameras will be based on fatality and serious injury collision data, alongside speed data and feedback from stakeholders.

Work on the development of a National Road Safety Camera Strategy, led by Transport Infrastructure Ireland and with the contribution of An Garda Síochána and other stakeholders, is ongoing, the government says.

Its aim is to improve road safety by developing an organisational framework, strategy and roadmap for enhancing camera-based enforcement.

Ireland's Department of Transport leads on road safety matters and legislation, but An Garda Síochána monitors, detects and enforces road safety legislation. 

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Robin Chase interview: Heaven and hell
    June 13, 2018
    A shared vision - or even much of a conversation at all - about what a better mobility balance looks like has been lacking…until now. Andrew Stone speaks to Zipcar founder Robin Chase about fairness – and the importance of not demonising cars
  • Speed reduction measures - carrot or stick?
    January 23, 2012
    In Sweden, marketing company DDB Stockholm employed a mock speed camera as part of a promotional campaign for automotive manufacturer Volkswagen. The result was worldwide online interest and promotion of the debate over excessive speed to the national level. A developing trend in traffic management policy is to look at how to induce road users to modify their behaviour by incentivising change rather than forcing it through the application of penalties. There have been several studies conducted into this; an
  • TISPOL conference sheds new light on VRUs
    June 2, 2016
    Geoff Hadwick reports on TISPOL’s efforts to protect vulnerable road users. At its annual conference in Manchester, TISPOL, the pan-European roads police organisation, called for the better protection of vulnerable road users. The statistics show a worrying trend as, since the turn of the century began, it is only the passenger car sector that is reducing its share of the overall EU fatality stats. Cyclists, motorcyclists and the elderly are all continuing to see their share of the figures worsen.
  • Swarco: ‘Everyone’s running after buzzwords’
    April 1, 2019
    The ITS world finds itself in a time of great change. Swarco’s Michael Schuch talks to Adam Hill about connectivity, the increasing importance of the end user – and why you shouldn’t leave your core business behind