Otago road deaths jump ‘disappointing’

Police say a big jump in the number of people killed on Otago roads in the last year is ‘‘incredibly disappointing’’.

Eighteen people were killed in 2019 — double the toll of the previous year — making it the second-highest road toll in the region in the past five years and bucking the national trend.

In Southland, the number of deaths dropped from 12 in 2018 to eight last year, but still contributed to an overall increase in the road toll for the entire southern region.

Road policing manager Senior Sergeant Paula Enoka, of Queenstown, said the result was ‘‘even more disappointing when most deaths are completely preventable’’.

‘‘Police’s road-policing focus is on four main factors: restraints, impairment, distractions and speed.

‘‘And, frustratingly, these factors appear to have contributed to most of our fatal crashes in 2019,’’ she said.

And the grim statistics have already begun to climb again this year.

The southern district had its first road fatality of 2020 shortly after midnight yesterday, when a car went off the road and hit a power pole north of Winton.

A Police spokeswoman said one person died at the scene, and the cause of the crash was being investigated.

Nationally, 353 people died on New Zealand roads in 2019, down from 377 the year before.

Assistant commissioner for road policing, Sandra Venables, said the national drop was good news, but the loss of life was still far too high.

‘‘It is promising to see after years of death and serious injuries increasing on New Zealand roads, it is starting to turn around,’’ Ms Venables said.

‘‘But this number is still no comfort to the people who have lost loved ones on our roads.’’

Duty Minister Iain Lees-Galloway echoed those thoughts, saying the decrease was positive, but the number of dead was still ‘‘staggering’’.

‘‘I want to acknowledge and thank all our emergency response professionals who deal first-hand with the trauma on our roads and work to save lives on a daily basis,’’ Mr Lees-Galloway said.

‘‘During this busy holiday period I encourage everyone to stay focused, be patient and drive according to the conditions every time they travel. I really want everyone to arrive home safely from their holiday destinations,’’ he added.

The minister said road safety was a key priority for the Government.

Several of Otago’s fatal crashes were in the Waitaki last year.

One of those, a single-car crash in Oamaru that killed Kaylem Rayne Webb-Hirst (16) and Michael Shelford Mauheni (17), resulted in safety changes being made to the intersection of T Y Duncan Rd and Shortland Rd.

The Waitaki District Council’s assets committee passed a resolution to install signage at the intersection, where the two teens died in June.

The year’s other double fatality occurred near Outram in September last year.

Mosgiel teen Jayde Cummings (15) and Waihola man Steve Macnee died in a collision at the intersection of Huntly and Church Rds.

Of Otago’s 18 fatalities, eight were drivers, five were vehicle passengers, three were motorcycle riders, and two were pedestrians.

Snr Sgt Enoka said police would continue to maintain a high presence on southern roads, breath-testing motorists and looking for people ‘‘undertaking risky behaviour and putting themselves or others at risk’’.

January was one of the ‘‘highest risk’’ months on the roads, with so many people still on holiday and travelling.

‘‘We want all road users to do this safely, and not end up in hospital, or worse, the mortuary.’’

— Additional reporting by RNZ

daisy.hudson@odt.co.nz