‘Absolutely unacceptable’: 17 dead in 13 days amid NSW horror road toll month

A man has died after falling from his vehicle on the state’s far north coast, adding to the “diabolical” death in NSW which has left 17 people dead in the last 13 days.

A horror road toll has seen 17 people die in 12 days across NSW roads. Two people died in Greenacre on Tuesday night after a motorcycle collided with a car. Picture: TNV

A man has died after falling from a vehicle on the state’s far north coast overnight, in what is amounting to a horror month on NSW roads.

Police were called to the Pacific Motorway near Chinderah shortly before 6.30pm after a man fell from a vehicle onto the roadway.

The man, aged in his 20s, was a passenger in a Mercedes when he fell from the car and was struck by a passing motorist.

Bystanders rendered aid to the man but he died at the scene.

The male driver of the Mercedes, 27, was subjected to a roadside breath test which allegedly returned a positive result.

Two people have died, and one other is in a critical condition following a crash in Greenacre after a crash between a car and motorcycle. Picture: TNV

He was arrested and taken to Tweed Heads Police Station where he underwent a breath analysis, which allegedly returned a reading of 0.074.

He was given an infringement notice for low range PCA and taken to Tweed Valley Hospital for mandatory testing.

It comes as the “diabolical” death toll on NSW roads has left 17 people dead in the last 13 days, with industry leaders calling on the Minns government to boost the number of police on the roads.

The state’s road toll is set to surpass last year’s horror numbers with 23 more lives lost than the same time last year.

A woman is dead after being hit by a van in Pymble last Tuesday. PHOTO: TNV

It follows a fatal crash involving a car and motorcycle in Sydney’s west on Tuesday left two people dead and a third fighting for their life.

NSW Police believe the drivers involved were breaching road rules at the time.

Assistant Commissioner Brett McFadden vented his frustrations and said a lot of these deaths were avoidable. Picture: John Appleyard

NSW Police Assistant Commissioner Brett McFadden said in the last 12 days 950 drivers had been identified as being either unlicensed or disqualified and “should just not have been on the road”.

Road experts have warned many of this year’s fatal crashes were caused by irresponsible driving, with extra policing being the “most effective” means of combating bad driving.

The Mounties Care CareFlight Helicopter was tasked by NSW Ambulance to respond to Springwood, where a woman in her 80s sustained chest and arm injuries after being struck by a car on Wednesday. Picture: CareFlight.

NRMA spokesman Peter Khoury said the death toll was “ absolutely unacceptable”.

“What we are seeing in New South Wales is diabolical,” he said.

“We want to see it stopped.”

Mr Khoury said there was “no single bullet solution” but believes policing is “the most effective way to address all forms of bad driving behaviours.”

“The government needs to maximise every tool in its arsenal. Increasing resourcing and police highway patrols should be our number one priority. Increasing their footprint in some key areas with RBT and drug testing,” he said.

Sir Bertram Stevens Drive. Royal National Park, New South Wales, where one motorcyclist died. Photo: Google

“The tip of the spear needs to be policing and we know the government is dealing with challenges in terms of recruitment.”

NSW Roads Minister John Graham said some drivers were putting lives at risk with bad behaviours.

“The rising number of lives being lost on our roads is extremely concerning and a big focus for the NSW Government,” he said,

Roads Minister John Graham said dangerous driving behaviours are putting lives at risk. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gaye Gerard

“Some people are still not getting the message and they are putting themselves and those around them at risk.”

Opposition Police spokesman Paul Toole said the government needed to take more serious action in addressing road trauma.

“We’ve got highway patrol offices who are actually being diverted onto other jobs due to shortages,” he said.

Joel Kandie was killed on Princes Highway in Yallah at Wollongong, in the NSW Lake Illawarra region, about 10.40pm on Sunday 19 May 2024. Police were told a car had crashed into a concrete barrier on Princes Highway in Yallah before the driver Joel Kandie (29 yo) exited his vehicle. He was then struck by another car and died at the scene. Photo: Facebook

“We need more police on our roads across the state and a focus on officers going into highway patrol.

“As we do not have the number of police officers out there, we are seeing far fewer drug and drink driving tests which is clearly having an effect on the road toll.”

The long list of horrific road-related deaths within the last fortnight included a father and his 11-year-old daughter who died while riding in the back of a DiDi in Sydney’s south.

Elsewhere across the state, a young man and woman were killed near Coffs Harbour last week after crashing into a tree.

Two days later, a 19-year-old man died after crashing into a tree near Mudgee.