Holidays begin with 41 road deaths already this month

The official holiday road toll starts at 4pm today but the country is already heading towards what could be one of the deadliest Decembers in years.

As of yesterday, 41 people had been killed on the road - the highest number of deaths at that time of the month in the past seven years.

Last year the toll stood at 32 for the same period and 42 for the entire month.

Today, as thousands of motorists hit the roads to spend Christmas with loved ones in other parts of the country, police are urging care to ensure an already bad month does not get worse.

"It's better to be half an hour late than to be dead," said Inspector John Kelly, who this week issued a nationwide plea for safe driving.

In the past five years, an average of 18 deaths and 390 injuries have occurred from road crashes in the Christmas-New Year period.

Mr Kelly said motorists heading out of town should ensure their cars were serviced and in good condition. Drivers should also be prepared for long trips by having enough rest before they left and allowing plenty of time in case of delays.

He said the roads were busy enough at this time of year without impatient drivers, like the motorist who swore at officers dealing with a fatal crash near Hamilton yesterday because he "wanted to get home" and "couldn't care less about the dead people trapped in the car".

Auckland's motorway police have also issued a plea to motorists to drive to the conditions, exercise care and patience and take breaks when driving long distances.

Inspector Dave Walker, the officer in charge of motorways, said the aim of road policing was to reduce crashes and deaths, but police could not do that alone.

"The majority of drivers have taken to heart the messages around the hazards of speed, drink driving and safety belts, but a small minority can ruin all those efforts by a lack of regard for the safety of themselves and others on the road."

Police say many of the deaths this month could have been prevented if these basic safety messages, especially wearing seatbelts, had been listened to.

Mr Walker said the North Shore/Rodney/Waitakere motorways serious crash unit did not have to attend any fatal or serious crashes during the last Christmas-New Year holiday period and it was hoped the same results could be repeated this year.

The official holiday period runs from 4pm today until 6am on January 5.