AA laments so many lives lost on the road

Thirteen people have lost their lives on New Zealand roads over the Christmas and New Year holiday period and the lives of many others will have changed forever as they learn to live with permanent injuries.

AA spokesman Simon Lambourne says that the road deaths between Christmas and the New Year are an absolute tragedy.

“Sadly, we are losing more than one person every day to road crashes at the moment.”

“When someone dies unexpectedly on the road it has a very tragic and ongoing impact on family and friends. One day they’re there and the next they’re gone, and there’s often no saying goodbye.”

Mr Lambourne says the AA will be continuing to work with others this year to try to improve road safety.

“There will be extra focus on road safety issues globally this year with the United Nations declaring 2011 the start of a Decade of Action for Road Safety.”

“The United Nations says we could halve projected global road deaths and injuries over the next 10 years if we commit to initiatives already known to make roads safer”

“In New Zealand, we can continue to improve our roads and our vehicles so they are more forgiving when people make mistakes. For example, we need more investment in safety works like median barriers, shoulder widening and the removal of trees, poles and ditches on roadsides.”

“As individuals we can also do more to make ourselves safer drivers. Never drive when you’re tired, never drive when you’re impaired by alcohol or drugs, and never allow yourself to get distracted by anything when you are behind the wheel.”

The AA urges drivers to remember the safe driving ABCs throughout summer:

- stay Alert
- take Breaks
- be Considerate
The 2010 provisional road toll of 373 compares with 384 deaths in 2009, 366 in 2008, 421 in 2007, 393 in 2006 and 405 in 2005.

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