Central West road toll revealed: Significant 'road trauma' impacting regional NSW

Nine people have died in road-related crashes this calendar year to date, with the amount of deaths from January 1 to mid-June creeping higher and higher.

There were 16 deaths across Central West roads in 2021. The 2022 calendar year ended with 13 fatalities.

Further data provided to the Western Advocate by the Centre for Road Safety, shows the 2023 road toll total is edging closer to those figures despite being just halfway through the calendar year.

A total of nine people have died on Central West roads in 2023 so far. The breakdown on deaths per LGA is here:

Some of those recent tragedies included the death of a Molong mother, a man killed in a multi-vehicle crash in Orange and a fatal collision near Dubbo where a 69-year-old woman died at the scene.

In all, the state's overall death toll for 2023 now sits higher than any other state or territory in the country.

And for those living in the west, rising roads tragedies continue to impact many communities.

Road safety officer for Orange and Cabonne, Andrea Hamilton-Vaughan said the unfortunate numbers continue to spike.

"There is no one in the Central West that has not been touched by road trauma in some way, shape, or form, and it's just everywhere lately," she said.

"The only way we're going to stop this is to follow the road rules and [to think] about the human suffering that is involved.

"It's the hardest part of road fatalities. Legal ramifications are very serious and they're one price to pay, but the loss of human life ... that cannot be replaced."

From January 1 to June 15, a total of 163 people died in road crashes across NSW. It's 18 more lives in the same period when comparing data to this time last year.

Of those deaths to date, nine were in the five to 16-year-old bracket. Four were children aged naught to four.

Authorities say nearly 35 per cent of the state's overall road toll this year was the result of excessive speeding.

More than 12 per cent of those deaths were due to alcohol consumption before getting behind the wheel.

Of the state's crashes to mid-June, 86 drivers were killed, 29 pedestrians, 23 passengers, 19 motorcyclists, and six pedal cyclists died since January 1.

Comparative data across a two-year average (between 2020 and 2022) shows this is a 1.1 per cent rise in all NSW fatalities to date.

In the west, Ms Hamilton-Vaughan said there is a rise in dangerous driving, from crossing double lines and driving "well over" speed limits; particularly in wet weather.

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