A report on road fatality figures in Australia shows male drivers between the ages of 40-60 are statistically the demographic most at risk of losing their lives on our roads.
Data, compiled and published by Savvyreveals the states and demographics involved in road deaths over the 12-month period between April 2022 and April 2023.
According to a report from the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts, 376 people who died nationally during this period were aged between 40-64 years.
Children aged zero to seven accounted for the least number of deaths during this period with 18 deaths recorded.
The report also outlined 563 deaths involving vehicle drivers, 235 deaths involving motorcyclists, 195 deaths including passengers and 164 deaths including pedestrians while cyclists accounted for 38 deaths.
The annual death toll during this period increased by 4.3 percent to 1204.
Statistics show that there is a 14.7 percent increase in the number of women who die on our roads. The Savvy the report also states that 48.6 percent of those who lost their lives were driving when the incident occurred.
4.6 deaths attributed to road fatalities were recorded per 100,000 people in Australia, an increase of 2.5 per cent YoY.
Australia sits 20 out of 36 countries in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) for road deaths.
Between 2011 and 2020, Australia’s death rate fell by 25.4 per cent compared to the OECD average of 34.6 per cent.
Based on figures from 2020, the United Kingdom recorded 2.2 road deaths per 100,000 people and Germany reported 3.27 road deaths per 100,000 people, with Australia sitting in the middle.
For context, New Zealand has a figure of 6.01 deaths and the United States has 11.78 road deaths per 100,000 people.
Over the past 10 years, the number of road deaths in Australia has remained relatively stable. The lowest year recorded was 2020 with 4.3 deaths per 100,000 people.
In 2021 this rises incrementally to 4.4, likely due to the end of the Covid lockdown restrictions as more cars return to the road, while 2022 sees an increase to 4.6 deaths per 100,000 people.
Savvy breaking down state by state the numbers associated with our nation’s death toll.
New South Wales recorded the highest number of deaths 296 deaths between April 2022 and April 2023, closely followed by Queensland with 280 death.
The state or territory with the least number of victims recorded is the Australian Capital Territory with 15 death.
Below, we’ve broken down the road toll figures recorded by Savvy for each state throughout the period from April 2022 to April 2023.
New South Wales
New South Wales recorded 296 deaths from road accidents, which are on the rise 2.1 percent YoY.
213 road victims were men and 83 were women. The number of female deaths increased by 18.6 percent YoY.
45.9 percent of road users who died were drivers, while 20.6 percent were pedestrians and 15.5 percent were vehicle passengers.
People aged 40 to 64 experienced the highest death rate with 81 people killed. This was followed by those aged 17 to 25 with 54 deaths and then followed by those aged 26 to 39 with 52 casualties.
NSW experienced a 10-year low in 2021 with 279 deaths, while 2018 recorded a 10-year high with 406 deaths.
Queensland
New South Wales recorded 280 deaths from road accidents, which are on the rise 1.1 percent YoY.
214 road victims were men, which is an increase of 2.4 percent, while 65 were women. The number of deaths for women decreased by three percent.
46.8 percent of road users who died were drivers, while 26.8 percent were motorcyclists and 14.3 percent were vehicle passengers.
People aged 40 to 64 experienced the highest death rate with 93 people killed, this was followed by 17 to 25 years and 26 to 39 years both resulting in 53 deaths each.
Victoria
Victoria recorded 266 deaths from road accidents, which are on the rise 10.4 percent YoY.
195 road victims were men, which is an increase of 14.7 percent. 65 were women, a decrease of 8.5 percent. There were 6 deaths classified as unknown.
45.6 percent of road users who died were drivers, while 18.8 percent were motorcyclists and 16.2 percent were pedestrians.
People aged 40 to 64 experienced the highest death rate with 74 people killed, and this was followed by 26 to 39 years with 64 deaths recorded and 17 to 25 years with 46 deaths.
Victoria experienced a 10-year low in 2021 with 200 deaths, while 2017 saw a 10-year high with 280 deaths.
Western Australia
Western Australia recorded 178 death due to road incidents increased 12.7 percent YoY.
127 road victims were men, which was unchanged YoY, while a 64.5 percent increase in deaths among women saw 51 deaths.
48.9 percent of road users who died were drivers, while 23 percent were motorcyclists and 16.9 percent were vehicle passengers.
People aged 40 to 64 experienced the highest death rate with 66 people killed. This was followed by 26 to 39 years with 42 deaths recorded and 17 to 25 years with 30 deaths.
Western Australia experienced a 10-year low in 2020 with 147 deaths, while 2017 recorded a 10-year high with 188 deaths.
South Australia
South Australia recorded 96 deaths from road accidents, which are on the rise 9.1 percent YoY.
60 road victims were men, a decrease of 13 percent YoY, while an 89.5 percent increase in deaths among women resulted in 36 deaths.
55.2 percent of road users who died were drivers, while 15.6 percent were motorcyclists and 14.6 percent were pedestrians.
People aged 40 to 64 experienced the highest death rate with 35 people killed, and this was followed by ages 26 to 39 with 20 deaths each.
South Australia had a 10-year low in 2017 with 80 deaths, while 2015 recorded a 10-year high with 108 deaths.
Tasmania
Tasmania recorded 43 deaths due to road accidents, a decrease of three percent YoY.
31 road victims were men while 12 deaths were women.
55.8 percent of road users who died were drivers, while 18.6 percent were passengers and 16.3 percent were motorcyclists.
People aged 26 to 39 and 40 to 64 years accounted for 10 deaths each. The age group of 17 to 25 years and over 75 years accounted for six deaths each.
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is recorded 34 deaths due to road accidents, a decrease of 24.4 percent YoY.
62 road victims were men, a decrease of 7.5 percent YoY, while a 57.9 percent increase in deaths among women saw 37 deaths.
32.4 percent of road users who died were passengers, while 26.6 percent were pedestrians and 23.3 percent were drivers.
Those aged 17 to 25 and 40 to 64 accounted for 10 deaths each, while those aged 26 to 39 accounted for six deaths.
The Northern Territory experienced a 10-year low in 2022 with 31 deaths, and saw a 10-year high with 52 deaths.
Australian Capital Territory
Australian Capital Territory records 15 deaths due to road accidents, an increase of 36.4 percent YoY.
46.7 percent of road users who die are passengers, and the same percentage applies to drivers.
Seven people aged between 17 to 25 lost their lives while 40 to 64 years contributed 5 deaths.
The ACT experienced a 10-year low in 2018 and 2019 with six deaths each year, while 2022 saw a 10-year high with 15 deaths.