Rider fatalities soar, with deaths among motorcyclists rising seven percent despite more safety tech than ever
Road fatalities have soared in the past year, with deaths among motorcyclists rising seven percent. The latest figures, which cover the 12 months to 31 March, record 1204 deaths of drivers, riders, passengers and pedestrians on Australian roads, a 5.9 percent increase and higher than pre-pandemic rates.
Figures vary state by state, with the most alarming increases being in the ACT (up 70 percent) Western Australia (16.9 percent), Victoria (9.7 percent), South Australia (9.4 percent) and Tasmania (9.1 percent). Victoria, Australia’s second most populated state, had a shocker of a start to 2023, with fatalities in the first six days the highest since 2000.
However, NSW death rates remained static while the Northern Territory recorded a 14 percent reduction, but still has the nation’s highest per capita rate of road deaths.
