Gardaí are urging all road users to be safe this Christmas and New Year.
One person has been arrested every hour since the start of December for drink or drug driving. The figures were released as part of a renewed appeal to road users to be cautious over the Christmas and New Year period.
Gardaí are appealing to road users to avoid risky behaviours as people are expected to start travelling around the country for Christmas from tomorrow.
Gardaí say there will be a high visibility road safety enforcement operation in place until 4 January.
So far this year, 181 people have lost their lives on the roads, an increase of 29 on the same time last year and 44 on the same period in 2019.
The Road Safety Authority has estimated for every fatality there are ten serious injuries in incidents.
It said the trends show intoxicated driving, speeding, not wearing a seatbelt and mobile phone use continue to be the main factors behind road deaths.
