Road traffic deaths decline in region

Five people died on Westmeath roads last year, with four losing their lives in Roscommon, new figures from the Road Safety Authority reveal. The figures published last week in a report 'Road Traffic Deaths By Road User and County - 2007 to 2012" show that there has been a significant reduction nationally in road traffic fatalities in 2012 compared to the average for the period 2004-2006 The average number of road traffic fatalities in the period 2004-2006 in Westmeath was 14, while in Roscommon, the average was 6. Nationally, there were 161 road traffic deaths in 2012, down from 186 in 2011 and 212 in 2010. The average for the period 2004-2006 was 378.