The number of road users “fatally or seriously injured” in a collision involving an “agricultural tractor” on public roads totalled 136 over a six-year period to 2022, according to the Road Safety Authority (RSA).
Provisional figures from the RSA also show that out of these 136 road users, 31 were “tractor occupants at the time of the collision”.
The RSA has also detailed that in relation to these 31 road users, six were under the age of 18.
According to the authority there were 150 fatal collisions on Irish roads in 2022, which resulted in 156 fatalities.
This represented an increase of 19 additional deaths compared to provisional Garda figures for 2021.
The government’s current Road Safety Strategy 2021-2030 aims to reduce the number of deaths and serious injuries on Irish roads by 50% over the next 10 years.
High risk
The RSA has cautioned that harvest time and silage season are “high risk” periods and that road users are encouraged to share the roads safely with agricultural vehicles.
The authority has also highlighted that a person can drive on the public road at age 16 if they have a learner permit or a full licence for the category W, which is a “work vehicle or land tractor”.
“A person who holds a learner permit for category W must not carry a passenger unless the vehicle is constructed or adapted to carry a passenger and that passenger holds a driving licence in the category for a minimum two years.
“A person with a full category W licence can only carry a passenger when the tractor is equipped to carry a seat,” it stated.
The RSA has stressed that if seatbelts are provided, they must always be worn and that children under the age of seven are not allowed to travel in a tractor.
Fatalities 2023
According to the RSA and An Garda Síochána, the total number of road deaths in the first half of the year were “the worst for six years”.
Latest provisional statistics from An Garda Síochána show there have been 103 fatalities on Irish roads to date in 2023.
