Frustrated drivers are leading to deadly mistakes on roads, driving advocates say after the worst Easter weekend road toll since 2021.
The official road death toll for the Easter period remains unconfirmed.
Police have counted seven deaths on the roads from 4pm Thursday until 6am Tuesday.
A police spokesperson says the Ministry of Transport has likely not taken into account a crash in Matamata-Piako as their toll remains at six.
The Automobile Association says impatient and frustrated drivers are leading to more people making bad decisions on our roads.
AA road safety spokesperson Dylan Thomsen told Morning Report drivers are losing their lives as a result of risky behaviour.
The road toll is the worst it has been since 2021.
Early on Sunday morning, one person died in a crash on State Highway 5, Whakarewarewa, south of Rotorua.
Another person died in a three-vehicle crash at Okaramio, northwest of Blenheim on Sunday afternoon. The person died at the scene, and two others were injured.
On Saturday morning, a motorcyclist died in hospital after crashing into a tractor in the Matamata-Piako district.
There were three tractor crashes on the same day.
And four people died in a crash between two vehicles and a motorcycle near Lake Pukaki. Three of them died at the scene on Saturday afternoon, and another who was seriously injured died in hospital two days later.
Two foreign students from the University of Canterbury were among those who died. One of the deceased was riding a motorcycle.
3 comments
Figures instead of facts
Posted on 02-04-2024 11:33 | By Let's get real
My condolences to the families involved in these tragic events.
We are all being conned into just looking at the numbers and that is being used to introduce ridiculous rules and regulations.
The sad thing is the number of two wheel vehicles, young foreign nationals and farm vehicles involved this time.
Yet the headline is always about the number of fatalities.
There isn't a single two wheeled vehicle that is safe in a collision at speed and yet we look at the actions of the people who are wearing a seatbelt, are surrounded by metal with crumple zones, airbags and other safety devices. Yet we're still spending millions to keep two wheeled vehicles safe ON THE ROAD.
Maybe, instead of taking action against responsible four wheeled vehicle drivers, we should ban ALL two wheeled vehicles from 50 kph+ roads.
Four wheels good; two wheels bad?
Posted on 02-04-2024 13:25 | By morepork
(Apologies to George Orwell...) We need to make roads safe for ALL users. We've all seen Motorcyclists risking their own, and other people's lives, by weaving in and out of traffic at high speed with no margin for error or evasive action possible. You don't fix this by more enforcement (although that seems to be the only remedy currently.) You fix it by changing attitudes. Get both motorists and motor cyclists onto defensive driving/riding courses and reinforce the reality that people can die on the road. Vehicles are lethal, yet we treat them as if they are not. I want proper driving instruction to be within the reach of all road users. When you look at what is spent on the mantra of "Slow Down" and the cost of road deaths to families and the community, a major campaign could easily be afforded and promoted.
One Answer
Posted on 02-04-2024 20:49 | By R1Squid
For 'Let's get real'.
There is no cure for stupidity. Leave your mobile off while driving!
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