S.I. No. 205/2026 - Road Traffic (Traffic Signs) (Amendment) Regulations 2026

Notice of the making of this Statutory Instrument was published in

“Iris Oifigiúil” of 15th May, 2026.

I, DARRAGH O’BRIEN, Minister for Transport, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by sections 5 , 95 and 96 of the Road Traffic Act 1961 (No. 24 of 1961) (as adapted by the Transport, Tourism and Sport (Alteration of Name of Department and Title of Minister) Order 2020 ( S.I. No. 351 of 2020 )), hereby make the following regulations:

Citation and collective citation

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Road Traffic (Traffic Signs) (Amendment) Regulations 2026.

2. The Road Traffic (Traffic Signs) Regulations 2025 and these Regulations may be cited together as the Road Traffic (Traffic Signs) Regulations 2025 to 2026.

Amendment of S.I. No. 433 of 2025

3. The Road Traffic (Signs) Regulations 2025 ( S.I. No. 433 of 2025 ) are amended-

(a) in Regulation 2:

(i) by the substitution for the definition of ‘“road”, “national road” and “motorway”’ of the following:

‘“road”, “national road”, “protected road”, and “motorway” have the meanings assigned to them by section 2 (1) of the Act of 1993;’

(ii) by the insertion after the definition of “buffer area” of the following:

“bus priority facility” means, in the case of any national managed road, a part of the hard shoulder of that national managed road which is designated as a bus priority facility in regulations made by the Minister pursuant to section 43 of the Act of 1993; and

(iii) by the insertion after the definition of “goods vehicle” of the following:

“hard shoulder” means, in the case of each carriageway, the portion of paved surface to the left of the carriageway in the direction of traffic flow on such carriageway;

(b) in paragraph (3) of Regulation 4, by the deletion of the words “in white”

(c) by the insertion of the following Regulation after Regulation 10:

“bus priority facilities

10A. (1) Traffic sign number RVMS 104 (bus priority facility sign) shall, in association with traffic sign number RRM 042 (bus priority facility line (Continuous Yellow)), indicate a bus priority facility.

(2) Traffic sign number RVMS 104 shall be operated using an automatic or manually operated device, as and when required, to display traffic sign number RVMS 104 when the bus priority facility is in operation.

(3) The content, design and dimensions of traffic sign RVMS 104 shall be as set out in Part 6 of Schedule 1.”

(d) by the substitution of the following Regulations for Regulations 76, 77 and 78:

“Edge of roadway

76. (1) Except as provided for in Regulation 77 and 78, traffic sign number RRM 025 (edge of roadway) shall indicate the line of the edge of a roadway.

(2) Traffic sign number RRM 025 shall consist of a broken yellow line along the edge of a roadway, consisting of segments not less than 100 millimetres and not more than 150 millimetres wide, approximately 2 metres long and approximately 2 metres apart.

Left edge of motorway or protected road

77. (1) Save where traffic sign number RVMS 104 (bus priority facility sign) is provided, traffic sign number RRM 026 (left edge of motorway or protected road) shall indicate the left-hand edge of the carriageway of a motorway or protected road.

(2) Traffic sign number RRM 026 shall consist of a continuous yellow line approximately 150 millimetres wide.

(3) Where traffic sign RVMS 104 is provided, traffic sign number RRM 042 (bus priority facility line (Continuous Yellow)) shall indicate the left-hand edge of the carriageway of a motorway or protected road.

(4) Traffic sign number RRM 042 shall consist of a continuous yellow line approximately 250 millimetres wide.

Right edge of motorway or protected road

78. (1) Traffic sign number RRM 027 (right edge of motorway or protected road) shall indicate the right-hand edge of the carriageway of a motorway, protected road, or dual carriageway.

(2) Traffic sign number RRM 027 shall consist of a continuous white line approximately 150 millimetres wide.”

(e) by the insertion of the following in Schedule 1, after Part 7 of Schedule 1:

“Regulation 10A

Part 8

Bus Priority Facility

RVMS 104: Bus Priority Facility Sign

Note:

1. This is a variable message sign that, when displaying RVMS 104, displays the image above.

2. Traffic sign RVMS 104 shall incorporate, as part of the traffic sign, a speed limit sign corresponding to the speed limit applicable to the relevant bus priority facility. Traffic Sign RUS 042 (60km/h Speed Limit) is shown incorporated as part of the design of Traffic Sign RVMS 104 above by way of example only, and any other speed limit sign set out in Part 1 of Schedule 3 to these Regulations may also be incorporated as part of Traffic Sign RVMS 104.

3. The dimensions for traffic sign number RVMS 104 are as follows:

Height: 2430

Width: 1545

The dimensions shown are in millimetres.

GIVEN under my Official Seal,

13 May, 2026.

DARRAGH O’BRIEN,

Minister for Transport.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Instrument and does not purport to be a legal interpretation.)

The principal objective is to enable, regulate and standardise the use of hard shoulders as bus priority facilities on national roads, consistent with powers under section 43 of the Roads Act 1993. The Regulations ensure that such facilities are clearly defined in law, appropriately signed, and visually distinct from general carriageway space.