A new bill would create a special speed limit of 20 kilometres an hour that local councils can use in built up areas.

Transport Minister Shane Ross is bringing the Road Traffic Bill to committee stage at the end of the month.

The new limit is part of the response to the ‘Jake’s Legacy’ campaign – which was set up after six-year-old Jake Brennan was killed outside his housing estate in Kilkenny in 2014.

Minister Ross says that will be one of a number of measures included: “The Road Traffic Bill contains a series of reforms designed to enhance safety on our roads.

“It address the growing issue of people driving under the influence, this time of drugs.

“The bill also introduces a new speed limit of 20km an hour, which local authorites will be able to apply in built-up areas.”