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More than two thirds of lives lost on our roads are in regional South Australia.
Tragically, latest State Government figures show there were 325 fatalities on regional roads in the past five years (2017-21)
This level of road trauma has prompted RAA to provide advice to drivers in support of Rural Road Safety Month.
RAA Senior Manager Safety and Infrastructure Charles Mountain said several factors contributed to the loss of life and serious injuries.
“Higher speeds on rural roads compared with the majority of metropolitan roads, coupled with the often-long distances travelled in these regions and driver fatigue contribute to these higher number of fatalities,’’ he said.
“Motorists must also be aware of speed limit changes as they near towns or approach road works and adjust their speed accordingly.’’
Mr Mountain said despite the recent easing of COVID-19 travel restrictions, many South Australians were still holidaying in their home state.
“If you’re planning on getting away, make sure you drive to the conditions, plan regular rest breaks and put your safety and that of other road users at the top of your driving agenda,’’ he said.
SA government data also shows in the past five years that the most common fatal crash types involve hitting a fixed object (35%), vehicle roll over (19%) and head on (17%) collisions.
The Australian Road Safety Foundation’s Rural Road Safety Month is national awareness campaign which targets regional and rural road safety throughout September.
The national community-based road safety initiative is designed to highlight the additional risks when driving on rural and remote roads across Australia.