The Bendigo, Campaspe and the Macedon Ranges regions have seen the most lives lost on our roads compared to all Western Victorian regions.
Our region has seen 13 lives lost on our roads this year as Ballarat and Moorabool areas sit at a close second with a further nine lives lost.
So far this year, 44 of the 164 lives lost on the state’s roads were on Western Victorian roads.
There were 11 fatal collisions on Western Victorian roads in July including the recent fatalities of 19 year old Jacob Catlin in Long Gully on Sunday and the person who died in Bamawm last night.
There have been seven fatalities in the Horsham/Northern Grampians division, five fatalities each in the Geelong/Surf Coast, Warrnambool/Southern Grampians, and the Mildura/Swan Hill divisions.
In an effort to slow this fatal number, Victoria Police highway patrol units are conducting Operation West Connect to target high-risk driving behaviour associated with road trauma across major arterials in Western Victoria.
Police detected over 130 offences during the ongoing road safety operation across Victoria’s west in July.
Operation West Connect is focusing on detecting speeding, distracted and impaired drivers.
Almost half offences detected in July were for speeding, with the majority of speeding drivers detected between 10km/h and 25km/h over the speed limit.
Across Western Victoria, Police conducted 469 preliminary breath tests and 44 preliminary oral fluid tests for drugs, detecting 12 drug driving offences and one drink driving offence.
Seven of the operation’s 12 drug driving offences coming from the regions 18 roadside drug tests. Meanwhile, almost 300 breath tests were administered across Bendigo.
Nine local speedsters were caught, seven unregistered cars were taken off the road – with one impounded – and one defect notice was handed out. Two locals were caught on their phones while driving and one was stopped for not wearing a seatbelt. Three heavy vehicle offenders were given notice.
Operation West Connect will continue across Western Victoria – encompassing major arterial roads from Geelong, Bacchus Marsh, Bendigo and Echuca as far west as the SA Border, and from the Surf Coast, Warrnambool and Portland as far north as the NSW Border.
Western Region Road Policing Inspector, Justine Ryan, says during a terrible period on our roads, Operation West Connect aims to drive down the high levels of road trauma.
“We’re continuing to run Operation West Connect to help keep all road users safe on roads out in the state’s west, and drive down these high levels of road trauma we’re experiencing,” Inspector Ryan says.
“Speeding continues to be a major contributing factor to serious injury and fatal collisions on regional roads, and yet we overwhelmingly throughout this operation, we continue to catch so many people going over the speed limit.
“Slowing down and sticking to the speed limit, as well as something as simple as putting on your seat belt, are things we can all do to remain safe on the roads.”
