Road Safety Alert - High Temperature Advisory and Yellow Weather Warnings for Ireland

The Road Safety Authority (RSA) is asking road users to exercise caution on the roads as Met Eireann has issued a weather advisory and yellow weather warnings for high temperatures.

The Yellow High Temperature Warning for Carlow, Kildare, Kilkenny, Laois, Longford, Meath, Offaly, Westmeath, Wexford, Limerick, Tipperary and Waterford runs from 1pm on Friday to 7am on Sunday with maximum temperatures in excess of 27 degrees combined with overnight temperature minimums in excess of 15 degrees.

The Advisory for Ireland runs until Tuesday 14 July with prolonged spells of very warm or hot weather occuring this week and lasting into next week with heat wave conditions expected.

With clear sunny conditions and high temperatures forecast over the next number of days, the RSA is advising drivers to:

• Reduce the risk from sun glare by wearing sunglasses. Be aware of the dangers of sun glare when travelling east in the mornings and west later in the day.
• Be prepared and ensure you have adequate supplies of water. Any delays to journeys could result in road users being stuck in traffic for a period time in hot conditions. Children and pets are particularly at risk during these hot spells of weather.
• Ensure your windscreen is clear of grease or grime inside and out. Make sure you have plenty of window washer fluid to clear flies/insects and excess dust from the road when driving.
• Watch out for vulnerable road users such as pedestrians, cyclists, horse riders and motorcyclists. Slow down and allow extra space when passing.

Advice to pedestrians, people who cycle, e-scooter users and motorcyclists

• Beware of the dangers that sun glare can cause, especially when crossing the road and at junctions.
• Follow current health messaging around the use of sun block when out walking and cycling.

Summertime is the most dangerous time of the year on our roads. In the summer, when there are no obvious dangers, and the weather is fine and days are brighter, we drop our guard.

There can be a spike in pedestrian, people who cycle and motorcyclist casualties over the summer months as the fine weather brings more people on to the roads. Drivers need to be on the lookout for them. Slow down and expect the unexpected.

For advice on severe weather driving tips, please see severe weather advice on the RSA website or check out the RSA Facebook and Twitter pages

Please also see our severe weather warning videos created in collaboration with Teresa Mannion here. See advice with advice for driving in Sun glare here.

For more weather updates, visit Met Eireann’s website www.met.ie.