DEATHS at Karuah and Cameron Park in the past two days have sparked a police appeal for care on the state’s regional roads.
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The crash deaths formed part of a horror streak around the state in which seven people died, including a crash near the Victorian border that claimed the lives of an 18-year-old man and a 67-year-old woman.
In the Hunter a 17-year-old learner motorcyclist died in a crash on the M1 on Sunday afternoon.
A pedestrian also died at Karuah after a Pacific Highway accident involving a truck, police said.
The latest tragedies contribute to a trend police are keen to see dwindle – more than three times as many deaths have occurred on regional roads this year compared to less than 50 in greater Sydney.
152 of the 201 deaths on NSW roads so far this year were in regional areas, provisional data shows.
Assistant Commissioner Michael Corboy said it was vital that drivers outside city areas take care and drive to the conditions.
“There have been six crashes of this kind within the Sydney metropolitan area,” he said.
“To have seven lives lost since Sunday, two of those in the same crash, highlights the need for all road users to drive, ride, cycle, and walk to the conditions.”
Assistant Commissioner Corboy said individual circumstances would be investigated but he expected some “likely causes” to include speed, fatigue, drink or drug driving, distractions including mobile phones and not wearing a seatbelt.
“Now is the time for those on our roads to be fully responsible by; sticking to the speed limit, wearing a seat belt, driving to the conditions, being fit and able to drive, and not becoming distracted,” he said.