Dublin motorists are advised to allow up to 45 minutes extra to get to work in the morning rush hour as traffic volumes increase with the return of children to schools.
With many schools terms starting today and tomorrow, the Automobile Association says average journey times from suburbs to the city centre will increase from between 30 to 45 minutes.
Meanwhile, as 800,000 students return to the classrooms, the Teachers Union of Ireland (TUI) has called for urgent funding to avert a staffing crisis. The TUI, which represents some 10,000 teachers, said £1.5 million was needed to address the staffing shortages in public schools which are facing "chaos".
The Association of Secondary Teachers is to ballot its 15,000 members for industrial action this month over low staffing levels.
Mr Conor Faughnan, the AA's public affairs manager, said rush-hour traffic in Dublin would begin to pick up today and by Monday week would be fully back to winter volume.
He said: "The alarm clocks will have to go back gradually. If you are leaving the house at 8 a.m. it will fall back to 7.30 a.m. and by next week or the week after that it will be 7.15 a.m."
The morning commute from Tallaght village to the city centre has been about 45 minutes during the summer, but motorists travelling this route can expect a journey time of 11/2 hours by Monday week, he said.
The National Safety Council is urging motorists to drive carefully as school children also walk and cycle bike to school.
The Small Firms Association said heavy traffic was causing millions of lost hours a year throughout the State. Its director, Mr Pat Delaney, called for a more integrated solution to Dublin city traffic grid-locks.
Mr Delaney said the association favoured the principle of Quality Bus Corridors, but they did not go far enough to give commuters a realistic alternative to using cars.
"People will not leave their cars unless they can be certain that the alternatives are in place and are working efficiently," he said.
"This requires a solution which provides park and ride sites, integrated ticketing, proper bus shelters and up to date information on bus availability. In this respect we are simply not at the races and are facing the prospect of complete mayhem."
Amid concerns about the damage to children's backs from carrying heavy school bags, Dunnes Stores says there has been strong demand for its new bag, designed by the National Back Pain Association.
Some 4,500 bags have been sold since the product was launched, according to Dunnes Stores' communications manager, Ms Lynda O'Keeffe. The bags, which cost £20, are available from most of Dunnes Stores 117 outlets throughout Ireland. The National Parents Council-Primary, advised parents to get to know their children's teachers and the school's behaviour code. It operates a helpline for parents from 10 a.m. to noon, tel 01676 0099.