Ireland has five default speed limits. Learn them as a set, because the test asks you to tell them apart rather than recite one.
| Road type | Default limit |
|---|---|
| Motorway | 120 km/h |
| National roads (N-numbers) | 100 km/h |
| Regional roads (R-numbers) | 80 km/h |
| Local roads (L-numbers) | 60 km/h |
| Built-up areas | 50 km/h |
"Default" is the important word
These apply only where nothing else is signed. A local authority can set a different limit for any stretch of road by bye-law, and where it has, the sign wins. Many councils are lowering urban limits to 30 km/h in housing estates, town centres and outside schools.
The change that catches people out
The default on rural local roads fell from 80 km/h to 60 km/h in February 2025. Any book or app that still says 80 is out of date, and this is one of the most common wrong answers people bring with them.
A limit is a maximum, never a target
You can be prosecuted for driving at the posted limit if conditions made it unsafe. The rule the test wants you to know: always drive at a speed that lets you stop within the distance you can see to be clear. In fog, that might be 30 km/h on a road signed for 100.
Reading the signs
- A number in a red circle is a maximum speed limit, always in km/h.
- A number in a blue circle is a minimum — blue compels, red prohibits.
- A white circle crossed by black diagonals ends a special limit and returns the road to its default. That default depends entirely on what kind of road you are on, which is why the direction-sign colours are worth knowing.