Latest figures show there have been 125 deaths on the roads in the Republic of Ireland so far this year, an increase of 25 for the same period last year.
Assistant Garda Commissioner for Roads Policing Paula Hilman said that in the last six days there have been 11 deaths on the roads in what has "been one of the most tragic weeks on the roads for a very long time".
Two grandparents and their three-year-old grandson died in a single-vehicle crash near Cashel, Co Tipperary on Tuesday, while a three-year-old girl died in a separate incident in Co Laois yesterday.
Speaking on RTÉ's Today with Claire Byrne, Ms Hilman said there are a number of factors that cause collisions.
"Speed limits are not targets. They're there as a guidance but also take into account the road and weather conditions."
She said gardaí detected more 1,700 people speeding over one bank holiday weekend, with one motorist travelling at more than 200km/h.
Ms Hilman said that drink and drug driving, people being distracted, or not wearing seatbelts "are the key things that cause road traffic collisions".
"Unfortunately, we see in terms of fatalities, one in five have not been wearing their seatbelt."
Ms Hilman also said that gardaí are seeing various ways that people have been distracted while driving.
"For us, yes, there is the offence of using your mobile phone while driving but also people can be distracted by something else in the car, they can be distracted by something outside. And we are starting to see people, and we have seen it, people FaceTiming, watching TV as they're driving as well," she said.
"Driving is one of the most serious things that we do in life and we take it for granted," Ms Hilman added.
"We get behind the wheel of a car and we go wherever we're heading. But it is one of the most important things we do in life in terms of looking out to come home safe and ensure that other road users are safe as well."
Ms Hilman said reducing deaths on the roads is "not just totally one-dimensional" and there needs to be a "holistic approach".
"What is the speed limit for the road? Are drivers driving within the road and weather conditions they’re seeing? And then, yes, the detection of that and ultimately the consequences, what happens once you’ve been detected and what will the outcome of that be."
She said she sits "on the board that oversees the road safety strategy and many of our members and staff are on the various working groups" but that "ultimately it's for Government to decide the recommendations that come out of that review".
She said that more can be done on policing, but "policing alone will not solely reduce deaths on our roads. We need to look at environment and we need to look at education."
Govt aims to reduce 'unnecessary and inappropriate speeding'
Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan described the recent road deaths as "heartbreaking" and said the Government has to respond to the overall increase in fatalities.
The most important response, he said, would be to follow an approach whereby the risk of collisions is lessened by reducing unnecessary and inappropriate speeding.
He said he will be meeting with his officials this week, as well as the Road Safety Authority to get is perspective.
Mr Ryan said that although the recent deaths involved people in cars, there has also been an increase in the number of fatalities involving pedestrian and motorcyclists.
He said that one of the key responses - which is in the Programme for Government - is a commitment to review speed limits.
This includes the potential for different default speed limits, such as a 30km/h limit in urban areas, and reducing limits on other roads.
Mr Ryan said that he expects Minister of State Jack Chambers to bring a memo to Cabinet on the issue in the coming weeks.
Additional reporting George Lee
