Speed plays part in most of Easter road deaths

A 24-year-old man died after a car plunged 5m down a bank near Taupo yesterday, leaving the Easter road toll last night at nine - more than twice that of last year and the highest since 1995.

Taupo police Constable Shane McNelly said the car veered over the bank about 2pm after it was struck by an overtaking four-wheel-drive vehicle on State Highway 5, 7km east of Taupo.

The man who died was in the front passenger seat, Mr McNelly said. The car's driver and another passenger escaped with minor injuries.

The four-wheel-drive remained in control and its passengers were unharmed, he said.

The last time the Easter road toll was as high was 10 years ago.

The toll climbed to four on Friday morning when a car hit a tree and burst into flames near Pukekohe. Another four people died in crashes on Sunday in Northland, Counties Manukau, Bay of Plenty and Canterbury.

The 16-year-old killed in Sunday's head-on crash near Arthur's Pass has been named. He was Samiri Dawn Hanson.

Acting road policing manager Inspector John Kelly said most of the deaths involved speeding.

"It's disappointing because the vast majority of road users don't speed. A few on the fringes insist on speeding, and they kill themselves and innocent people."

The high toll did not indicate that drivers were becoming more reckless, he said.

"It's just one of those things ... sometimes it's a low toll and sometimes it's high.

"But the long-term trend is going in the right direction, especially considering we're in the face of vast increases of driver and vehicle numbers."

The Easter road toll ranged between 10 and 19 from 1986 to 1994, and has since been in single figures.

The toll last year was four.

Holiday-makers returning to major centres last night avoided any accidents despite heavy traffic.

Police reported a 5km line of stationary traffic from Wellsford to Orewa yesterday afternoon.

Late afternoon traffic also slowed to a crawl north of Wellington - from Foxton to Otaki, and on State Highway 2 from Mount Bruce heading south.