Gardaí reports an average fall of 15% in traffic levels

Gardaí reports an average fall of 15% in the traffic levels across the country as they enforce Covid-19 restrictions.

The surveillance has been very strict, proper rules and guidelines were provided for the citizens by the authorities to restrict their movement within their counties itself.

For proper screening, 132 Gardaí checkpoints were installed on national roads to reduce unwanted travelers.

Deputy commissioner John Twomey said that the traffic percentage in the main roads have been reduced considerably.

“It appears that people are reducing their journeys in line with the public health advice and we thank them for that. However, this needs to be maintained,” he said.

He also added that fewer journeys mean people having fewer interactions which reduces the chances for Covid-19 to spread and that is the strong advice from the public health professionals as well.

“As we said before we introduced Operation Fanacht, we appreciate that this level of checkpoints may result in delays and difficulties for people. We thank people for their patience,” he added.

While comparing the data collected by the Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), the volume of total private vehicles on national roads are now below 70% compared to the levels of pre-covid period.

Gardaí asks people to restrict their movements within their counties itself and also to avoid unnecessary travels at this time.

Twomey said that Covid-19 remains a real threat to all citizens and in particular to our most vulnerable citizens. This is a critical time for the country and all citizens have a responsibility to comply with the public health guidelines and regulations for the good of society.

“This is a public health regulation under level three and it is An Garda Síochana’s function to check compliance with this as part of Governmental and societal efforts to reduce the spread of Covid-19,” he said.