Thirty-nine chairs at dinner tables have been left empty after a horror year on our region's roads.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
According to data from Transport for NSW's Centre for Road Safety, 39 people lost their lives on roads in the Central West and Orana Regions in 2023 - 10 more than in 2022.
"Regardless of the confirmed final number of lives lost on NSW roads last year there is a perception that whilst this is terrible, it's also 'terribly acceptable'," Macquarie Sector Highway Patrol inspector Scott Allerton said, addressing the figures.
"If we took that same number of deaths and published that there were that number of murders on our streets, there would be a public and political outcry.
"We as road users - be it as passengers or drivers - need to understand that with any level of risk taken above and beyond the normal that comes with driving a motor vehicle, can lead to catastrophic outcomes that irreversibly changes individuals, families and communities lives for ever."
The local government areas with the highest number of road deaths in 2023 were the Dubbo Regional, Mid-Western Regional and Lithgow council areas, with five lives lost each.
The Cabonne council area was not far behind with four fatalities in 2023 and Forbes came in third position with three.
In 2023, two people died on roads in the Cobar, Coonamble, Bathurst Regional, Bland and Orange council areas.
Sally Webb, deputy secretary of safety, environment and regulation at Transport for NSW, said the alarming numbers represented dozens of tragedies.
"Every death or serious injury on NSW roads is a tragedy and the impact echoes through the community," she said.
"Road deaths are particularly hard for many country communities where people may have life-long ties to county towns."
Holiday period scarred by tragedy
There was a tragic end to 2023 when two men in their 40s died in a five-car pile up on the Great Western Highway at Wallerawang on December 30. Fifteen others, including five children, were injured.
Two others lost their lives just weeks before Christmas.
On Saturday, December 16, a white van lost control at a roundabout on Moulder Street, Orange, crashing into a parked black utility. Paramedics treated the 49-year-old van driver; however, he died at the scene.
That same day, a Kia Sorento and a Toyota HiAce Minibus collided on Fitzroy Avenue in Cowra, causing the bus to overturn. An 84-year-old man, who was thrown from the bus during the crash, died at the scene.
The holiday period deaths rounded out a horror year on roads in the central west.
In a shocking incident near Mudgee on October 16, 2023, an 18-year-old lost his life when the Mitsubishi Triton he was a passenger left Lue Road and careened into a creek after being struck by a Ford Falcon.
A 33-year-old man also died when his car was sandwiched between a truck travelling behind him and a ute heading the other direction on the Golden Highway outside of Dubbo on August 30.
'Would you risk their life?', campaigner asks
Ttruck driver and road safety campaigner Rod Hannifey said impatience, complacency and mobile phone use in cars are just some of the risky behaviours he regularly witnesses on the road.
He said the latest data should be a wake up call to drivers.
"We should treat every other vehicle as though there was a member of your family in it," Mr Hannifey said.
"Whether it's the old bloke that's going along a bit steady, whether it's the young learner, whether it's somebody that does something silly... If that car had a member of your family in it, would you risk their life?
"Would you overtake them when you can't see enough road? Would you pull out in front of them?"
It's not just drivers who can help keep roads safe, Inspector Allerton said.
"We need to encourage passengers, friends and family to call out any risky behaviour they may see when in vehicles when with their friends," he said.
"A simple 'slow down', 'take a break', 'don't drive affected by alcohol or drugs' can be the difference between a small inconvenience and catastrophic life changing outcome."
Ms Webb said government agencies and road users share the responsibility to reduce the road toll.
"The NSW government continues to deliver a range of road safety measures to improve safety in our regional areas, including lifesaving infrastructure treatments, road safety education and campaigns, as well as police and automated enforcement," she said.
"The NSW government is committed to lowering the toll, but we can't do it alone - we need everyone to work together so everyone makes it home safely."
