Over the past few hours Police have had a number of traffic incidents where drivers have alerted us to concerning behaviour on our roads, some of which have resulted in serious crashes.
National Road Policing Manager Superintendent Steve Greally says “There have been about fifty crashes since 3pm today. No one has died yet, but this driving behaviour is just not safe. The potential to ruin people’s Christmas is high. There have been several nose-to-tail crashes all over the country, from Auckland and Hamilton, down to Waimate in Canterbury. Although many of these have been minor, they could have been avoided had people kept their distance, kept alert and slowed down.
There’s been a serious crash where a car has rolled down a bank in Southland plus we have had a car on fire near SH 25a near Thames where the driver's crashed into a paddock.
On top of these incidents we have had a serious crash on SH 1 Hatepe, near Taupo in the Bay of Plenty where the occupant has been transported to hospital. There’s also been another minor crash near Waikanae Bridge.
Drivers need to keep their wits about them, think about their actions, the consequences and think about how we can all make a difference by driving to the conditions and keeping to a safe speed.”
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Issued by Senior Media Advisor, Jillian Reid, Public Affairs PNHQ 021 947 003