WATCH:  Pupils from County Roscommon school appeal to drivers to 'slow down'

The pupils of Cloverhill NS outside Roscommon Town took to the side of the N60 this morning, Friday, to appeal to drivers to ‘Please Slow Down'.

As part of their Slow Down Day, the pupils displayed their signs and chanted the message to raise driver awareness surrounding the speeds at which traffic passes the school.

With help from Green Schools Travel Officer Ciaran Hussey, the pupils conducted a speed survey of the morning traffic and when the school bus drops pupils to school.

Two separate surveys found that out of 161 total speed recordings taken, 98% of all cars exceeded the 50km/h speed limit in place for drop-off time.

The highest speed recorded was 104km/h, with the average speed of cars coming to just over 77 km/h.

Sixth Class pupil John Dolan explained the idea behind the day. “We’re appealing to people to slow down outside the school and make the road a safer place.” 

His classmate Stefania Boiciuc highlighted the dangers of speeding outside the school. “There have been many crashes in front of our school as the road is really busy, and we only have a small area for the the bus to park.” 

Principal Catherine Mullarkey expressed her concerns at the precarious situation her pupils are put in at drop-off, pick-up and at break times given the school’s proximity to the road.

“This is our location, we can’t do anything about being so close to the road. We are a busy, thriving educational environment here and our number one priority is the children's safety, as  it is at every school.

“We know it's a busy main road. It's a national route, but these are young children, one of the most vulnerable groups in society and they need to be protected,” she stressed.