27 killed on roads in holiday period

Press, 5 January 1987, Page 6

27 killed on roads in holiday period

PA Wellington Nine people , have been killed on New Zealand’s roads so far this year, taking the Christmas-New Year holiday road toll to 27. Christmas-New Year road deaths last year were 25, but the holiday period this year was 48 hours longer, according to the Ministry of Transport. The- holiday period, for statistics purposes, ends at 8 a.m. today, while last year it ended on January 3, two days earlier. The number of accidents involving alcohol appears to have dropped by at least 20 per cent, according to the assistant chief traffic superintendent, Mr Henry Gore. The number of fatal accidents with alcohol involved was usually about

50 ■ per cent .. but it appeared to have been a factor in only 30 per cent this holiday, Mr Gore said. " : The number of accidents involving only one vehicle was of concern to the Ministry, Mr Gore said, with 12 of the 26 fatal accidents during the holiday period involving only one vehicle. More cars appear to have; been driven into banks, ditches, trees and lampposts, rather than into other cars. “There seems to have been a departure from the two-car collisions to single vehicle accidents.” At the beginning of the holiday period, Mr Gore voiced concern at the high number of motorcyclists involved in the road deaths. “But this has changed in the last few

days.” --x "Jfi Of the 27 people killed /■ in accidents during the Christmas-New Year - break, nine have been the i’l drivers of vehicles, tour XS have been passengers, five motor-cyclists, two XW pillion passengers, five X pedestrians and two cyclists. Hotel patrons at the Lauder Hotel in Central iSi Otago abandoned their 04 drinks about 8.30 p.m. on Saturday when a car -I travelling toward Alexan* -v : ; dra failed to take a bend outside the hotel. .5Police said the car ‘f -4 rolled several times before it landed in a ditch. The driver was thrown from the car and trapped beneath it in the ditch.' Hotel customers lifted the car enough to free the > driver. They , tried without success to resuscitate him.