Limerick’s Live 95 & IBI Road Safety Campaign Episode 2

This Independent Broadcasters of Ireland (IBI) initiative is supported by the News Reporting Scheme, which helps fund public interest journalism content through Coimisiún na Meán and the Exchequer

Episode 2 of Limerick Live 95’s Road Safety campaign explored the reality of cycling safety, road infrastructure, and driver-cyclist interactions across Ireland, weaving together personal recovery stories, mechanical advice, official road safety statistics, and advocacy perspectives.

Professional cyclist Imogen Cotter partnered with the Road Safety Authority (RSA) after surviving a devastating head-on collision.

Imogen took up cycling around age 23, participated in her first road race at 24, and threw herself entirely into the sport: "I had this dream of becoming a professional cyclist and I kind of put all my eggs in that basket". After stints training in Mallorca and Belgium, she won the Irish National Road Race Championships and signed her first professional contract at age 28.

To prepare for her upcoming season, Cotter relocated to Girona, Spain, on January 1, 2022. Just three and a half weeks later, during a routine training ride, a driver attempted to overtake another cyclist by pulling into her lane. Instead of returning to his side of the road, the driver took a racing line toward a side turn and struck Cotter head-on at high speed. Reflecting on her survival, Cotter describes herself as "very, very lucky in a very unlucky situation".

The physical toll of the crash was catastrophic. Imogen suffered a shattered patella, a broken piece of her femur, a completely ruptured quadriceps tendon, a torn patellar tendon, meniscus damage, and extensive lacerations requiring stitches after she was thrown onto the vehicle’s bonnet and windscreen. Her wrist was likewise "pulverised". Over the course of the following years, she underwent six surgical operations—two on her knee and four on her wrist.

Even while confined to a full leg cast and arm casts, Imogen remained fixated on getting back on the bike, doing single-leg indoor cycling, aqua jogging, and swimming. She returned to outdoor cycling by June, but once back to racing, the psychological impact surfaced. She was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder: "I think the thing with physical recovery is you know how long a bone takes to heal, but with mental recovery it’s... it just feels never-ending sometimes."

Imogen emphasised that the collision resulted from impatient, impulsive choices: "I always say that the 10 seconds a driver can save overtaking me could be the 10 seconds that changes my life, and that is what happened to me." While urging drivers to realize that a motor vehicle "can become a weapon," she also advised cyclists to focus on "controlling the controllables" by wearing high-visibility gear, using working bike lights, and following rules of the road.

David Martin from the Road Safety Authority noted rising cyclist casualties in Ireland, reporting 13 deaths in the current year, 14 in the prior year, and approximately 30 serious injuries for every fatality. He revealed that about two-thirds of cyclist fatalities involve collisions with other vehicles, while over 70% of hospital-treated injuries stem from single-cycle incidents.

Hospital tracking data between 2021 and 2025 revealed a severe disconnect with official Garda traffic figures:

David Martin attributed part of this discrepancy to unrecorded single-vehicle falls and incidents where Gardaí were not summoned to the scene. He stressed the necessity of proper bike visibility, noting with concern that RSA surveys showed only one in five cyclists wear high-visibility gear and roughly half wear helmets. For motorists, David reiterated statutory safe overtaking clearances: a minimum of 1 meter in speed zones up to 50 km/h, and 1.5 meters in zones exceeding 50 km/h.

Hugh Morrisey of The Hub - Bike for Life in Limerick outlined essential maintenance and safety checks for everyday commuters and second-hand bike buyers:

Fintan Flaherty, chair of the Limerick Cycling Campaign, argued that while personal protective equipment and individual vigilance are positive, the state must move past relying on "low-value measures such as high-visibility clothing campaigns". Fintan noted that the Irish Cycling Campaign previously issued a vote of no confidence in the RSA for failing to implement systemic safe-system designs under Vision Zero principles.

Mr. Flaherty called for structural interventions modelled after cities like Helsinki, which achieved a year with zero road fatalities through lower speeds and physically segregated lanes. He outlined a number of specific priorities which included:

Fintan Flaherty also cited the Limerick-Shannon Walking and Cycling Index, where 7 out of 10 residents supported building segregated cycling lanes even if it reduced road space for general motor traffic.

He concluded by reminding listeners of the extensive public health gains of active travel: regular cycling reduces cardiovascular disease and cancer risks by up to half, improves children’s cognitive performance for up to four hours, and boasts a benefit-to-risk ratio of 20-to-1 in life-years gained.