During the past five years there have been two fatal crashes and 11 serious injury crashes on state highway (SH) 6 between Hira and Rai Valley.
Seven of those crashes have involved motorcyclists reports the Nelson Mail.
Five of those accidents involved other vehicles and the others were trucks rolling or coming off the road.
Nationally, the number of truck accidents has reduced significantly in the last two decades but they still make up 14% of the national road toll, while trucks only account for 6% of the total distance travelled on New Zealand roads, according to New Zealand Transport Agency data.
Road Transport Forum chief executive Ken Shirley commented to the Nelson Mail that the vast majority of vehicle accidents, including those on SH6, were caused by inattention, speed and fatigue.
”All crashes are human error but most crashes are where errors are made where the asset is less forgiving”.
Shirley says this government had made the biggest contribution to improving roads in decades, but there would always be scope for more.
NZTA acting highways manager for Nelson Mark Owen says incremental improvements to the route would create the biggest safety benefits, not big-ticket projects.
More than $2 million had been spent on the road over the last three years and there are plans for more work along the stretch.
It would include new passing opportunities between Rai Valley and Renwick and would examine curve realignment to make the Rai Saddle easier to negotiate.
