Road toll dips towards 38-year low

By AINSLEY THOMSON

The number of people killed on the roads continues to drop, with this year's toll set to be the lowest since 1964.

The toll this year stands at 387. At the same time last year it was 431. The official road toll for last year was 455.

The worst year on the roads was 1973, when 843 people died.

National road policing manager Superintendent Steve Fitzgerald said this year's toll could be even lower than the 1964 toll of 428.

That year is used as a benchmark, because before then too few vehicles were about to make a useful comparison.

In 1964 - 38 years ago - the population was 2,617,000 and there were 1,119,252 vehicles. Today there is a population of 3,973,499 and there are 2,633,000 vehicles.

Roads and road safety have improved, with the introduction of compulsory safety belt laws and a shift in attitude to alcohol and driving.

Mr Fitzgerald said the road toll had dropped because of more police on the roads over the past seven years, specific campaigns that targeted speeding and drunk driving, and good public response to messages from the police and the Land Transport Safety Authority.

"It's been a good year," he said, "but we should not lose sight of where we are going."

The Christmas-New Year holiday period begins at 4pm today and will end at 6am on January 3. Last year 21 people were killed during the holiday period.

Mr Fitzgerald said all police officers on duty would be watching the traffic, and 1500 marked police cars would be in action at some time over the break.

Driving guidelines


Land Transport Safety Authority guidelines for safe holiday road travel include:

* Have your vehicle checked.

* Make sure everything is securely stowed when packing your vehicle.

* Get plenty of sleep before your journey and take regular breaks.

* If possible, share the driving.

* Be courteous and let others merge.

* Be patient with trucks and towing vehicles.

Herald feature: Cutting the road toll

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