An AA report to be published today identifies six national roads in the midlands, east and Border areas as the most dangerous in the Republic, and identifies more than a dozen others as "medium-high risk".
Motorists are five times more likely to be involved in a fatal collision on a single carriageway than on a motorway, the report also says. The Republic's motorways, however, are marginally less safe than those in the UK, the Netherlands and Sweden.
The six most dangerous roads in the Republic are named as the N54 between Clones and Monaghan; the N53 between Dundalk and the Border; the N55 between Edgeworthstown and Granard; the N52 between Mullingar and Tyrrellspass; the N78 between Athy and Castlecomer; and the N75 between Thurles and the N8.
More than a dozen other roads in the Republic are identified as "medium-high risk". These include just two sections of road in the east - the N81 between Tallaght and Baltinglass, and the N2 Ashbourne road in Co Meath - and just one section of road in Connacht: the N59 between Dromore West, Co Sligo, and Bangor in Co Mayo.
Among the other medium-high risk roads are the N62 between Roscrea and Templemore; a section of the N25 between Waterford and Dungarvan; part of the N72 between Lismore and Castletownroche; the N69 between Listowel and Tralee; the N21 between Tralee and Castleisland; the N69 between Foynes and Limerick; the N67 between Ennistymon and Kilrush; the N63 between Lanesborough and Longford; the N55 between Ballymahon and Edgeworthstown; and the N55 between Granard and Cavan.
More than 10 other roads are similarly categorised medium-high risk in Northern Ireland.
The worst continuous stretch of road is the N56/N54/A3 between Edgeworthstown, Co Longford, and Armagh town, which varies between medium-high risk and high risk .
Minister for Transport Martin Cullen as well as representatives from the Garda, the PSNI and motoring bodies are to attend the publication of the report in Dublin today.
The report is part of the European Road Assessment Programme, which involves more than 20 motoring organisations, road authorities and expert bodies across Europe. Risks are calculated by comparing the frequency of death and serious injury on each stretch of road with how much traffic the road is carrying.
Between 1998 and 2002 there were 2.3 fatal collisions per billion vehicle kilometres travelled on motorways in the Republic, compared to 4.7 on dual carriageways and 11.5 on single carriageways. In the UK, there were 1.9 fatal collisions per billion vehicle kilometres travelled on motorways. In the Netherlands and Sweden, the comparative figure was 1.7.
In Spain, the figure was 11.3.
