Victoria Police is issuing an urgent warning to regional motorists, following a significant spike in lives lost on rural roads this year.<\/p>\n
The latest police intelligence shows that there were 24 lives lost from collisions on rural roads as of 30 January, a 64 per cent increase on the five-year average for fatal regional collisions in January.<\/p>\n
Of those 24 lives lost on rural roads, 21 resided in regional locations and two worked in regional centres.<\/p>\n
Eighteen of the 21 fatal collisions occurred within 100 km of the deceased\u2019s residence.<\/p>\n
More than 85 per cent of rural fatalities occurred on high-speed rural roads, with speed limits between 80km\/h \u2013 110km\/h.<\/p>\n
Police suspect driver error, resulting from distraction and inattention, has contributed significantly to rural road fatalities in January.<\/p>\n
They\u2019re urging regional road users to take more care as the state enters another particularly high-risk period.<\/p>\n
There were eight lives lost in five days between 12 and 16 February last year \u2013 with six of those eight fatalities occurring on rural roads.<\/p>\n
Police are determined to avoid a repeat of this concerning rural road trauma trend, with highway patrol deployments to be bolstered to regional areas throughout February, ahead of a statewide operation over the Labour Day long weekend in March.<\/p>\n
At the time of writing, 45 lives have been lost on Victorian roads this year \u2013 up 45.2 per cent from the 31 lives lost this time last year and well-above the five-year average of 27.<\/p>\n
30 of the lives lost this year were on rural roads.<\/p>\n
Assistant Commissioner of Road Policing, Glenn Weir, said it\u2019s \u201ca common misconception that it\u2019s not locals losing their lives on country roads\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat couldn\u2019t be further from the truth. The reality is, people residing in regional areas make up the majority of those killed on rural roads,\u201d Mr Weir said.<\/p>\n
\u201cDistraction and basic road user error is significantly contributing to regional lives lost. It just shows a simple lapse in concentration can have catastrophic consequences. It is imperative all road users remain alert, particularly when travelling on high-speed rural roads.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s been a terrible start to the year on our roads, and we\u2019re entering another particularly high-risk period. Please don\u2019t be complacent and think that road trauma can\u2019t happen to you, because a split-second of inattention is all it takes.\u201d<\/p>\n
For more information and tips for staying safe on the roads visit the Road Safety page on the Victoria Police website.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Victoria Police is issuing an urgent warning to regional motorists, following a significant spike in lives lost on rural roads this year. The latest police intelligence shows that there were 24 lives lost from collisions on rural roads as of 30 January, a 64 per cent increase on the five-year average for fatal regional collisions […]<\/p>\n