South Australia Police is urging motorists to take greater care on the roads, with the state's road toll reaching 44 this week — a four-year high and 14 more lives lost compared with the same time last year.
An additional 341 serious injury crashes have been recorded so far this year, equating to almost two-and-a-half serious collisions every day.
Alarmingly, 11 of those killed (25%) were motorcycle riders and four were cyclists, while 25 deaths (56%) occurred in regional areas.
Analysis of fatalities shows:
- 16 deaths (36%) involved dangerous driving, including eight attributed to speeding
- 21 deaths (48%) resulted from single vehicle collisions, including rollovers or hitting a fixed object
- 12 fatalities (27%) involved road users aged over 60
- Two crashes resulted in multiple fatalities, accounting for six lives lost (14%)
SAPOL Traffic Services Branch Officer in Charge, Superintendent Shane Johnson, said the figures were deeply concerning.
"Any fatality on our roads is a serious tragedy. The number of deaths and serious accidents we have had this year is significantly higher than SAPOL's target and I urge South Australian road users to be more careful."
"Think about your family and friends, and the family and friends of those around you.
It's simple — don't drink or take drugs and drive, don't speed, and don't be careless on the roads", said Supt Johnson.
SAPOL representatives will today attend a road safety roundtable with the RAA, the Minister for Police and Road Safety, and other road safety experts.
The roundtable coincides with National Road Safety Week and the launch of a new RAA e-scooter and e-bike safety campaign, Don't bury your head in the footpath – Face the facts
Tragically, one in three fatal e-scooter crashes in Australia involve children, with 50% of children seriously injured on e-scooters sustaining head injuries.
RAA Senior Manager Safety and Infrastructure Charles Mountain said many users still did not understand the rules.
"It's now been almost 12 months since the use of private e-scooters in public areas became legal, and our research shows the vast majority of people don't know the rules they need to abide by to help keep them safe.
The consequences of not following the rules can be horrific — particularly for children on these devices.
Not wearing helmets, speeding or riding underage can result in serious injuries, particularly head trauma and facial injuries.
That's why RAA is launching a safety campaign to raise awareness of the laws and help keep e-scooter and e-bike users and others safe on our roads and footpaths."
For more information, visit SAPOL - Road safety
