By Tania Martin
POLICE say excessive speed has been a factor in the Shire of Yarra Ranges recording the highest road death toll in Victoria for 2006.
The Yarra Ranges recorded 13 fatalities, with many of the accidents involving cars running off the road and hitting trees.
But despite Yarra Ranges recording the highest road toll for the state, the number of fatalities in the area did not increase from 2005.
Yarra Ranges also recorded 13 road deaths in 2005, two more than in 2004.
Acting Sergeant Graeme Rust of Yarra Ranges Traffic Management Unit said most of the fatalities last year were caused by people driving too fast for the road conditions.
“A lot of the accidents have happened because people were driving way too quickly and ran off the road and into trees,” he said.
“A lot of these accidents could have been avoided.”
Montrose and Belgrave were the blackspots for car accidents in 2006, with six fatalities recorded in the two areas.
Swansea Road in Montrose recorded three fatalities, while in Belgrave there were fatalities on Gembrook-Belgrave, Wellington, and Belgrave-Hallam roads.
Other towns in the Dandenong Ranges that had road accident deaths were Monbulk and Sherbrooke.
The remaining five fatalities in the shire were in the Yarra Valley in Healesville, Gruyere, Lilydale , which saw two fatal accidents, and Seville.
Sgt Rust said Yarra Ranges TMU would continue to run traffic blitzes on speeding this year.
Diary of traffic deaths in the hills
28 February
A 32-year-old Monbulk woman died following a collision just minutes from her home.
28 March
A man died following a three-car collision on Swansea Road, Montrose.
9 April
A 59-year-old Mooroolbark man died when the Mercedes sedan he was driving left Belgrave-Hallam Road and hit a tree.
16 April
A 62-year-old Monbulk woman died following a collision on Monbulk Road in Sherbrooke.
10 May
A man died following a collision on Swansea Road, Montrose.
13 September
A 37-year-old passenger died after a collision on the Gembrook-Belgrave Road.
2 December
A 20-year-old Kilsyth woman died following a collision on Swansea Road.
15 December
An Emerald man was killed following a collision on Wellington Road in Belgrave South.
