Police expect a second catastrophic year of road deaths

Another "catastrophic year" on Victorian roads could be recorded as the number of fatalities surges among motorcyclists and pedestrians. The state's road toll has reached 173 in August, the same total as by this time in 2023. Officers have revealed there is a particular spike in the number of motorcyclists and pedestrians killed. The death toll of motorcyclists nearly doubled from 23 by August 2023 to 42 so far in 2024. Victoria Police said 29 pedestrians have died in 2024 so far, an increase from 22 by this time in 2023. Assistant Commissioner Glenn Weir told the press on Saturday that the spike can't continue and that the increase in motorcyclist deaths is a "really horrifying jump in trauma". He said the trend of poor behaviour on the roads is not going away and is an issue not limited to Victoria but seen in other states across Australia. "I'm really concerned about where we're heading going into the better weather coming up, a lot more events coming up, a lot more people out and about," he said. Mr Weir said officers have dealt with a lot of serious injury collisions in the last four days but added, "people cannot blame the weather". "None of them have been caused by the conditions on the roads," he said. "People need to stop looking to blame other things and realise that they're in control." Excessive speed has been the number one contributing factor, but Victoria Police also raised the issue of distracted drivers, reckless behaviour and people not wearing seatbelts. "2023 was a catastrophic year on our roads," Mr Weir said. "We do not want to see this level of trauma again but sadly if we keep going at this rate it will be similar or worse." Victoria Police made a plea for all road users to be vigilant, slow down and take care on the roads.