Australian Police warns of frequent road accidents during winter afternoons
Sydney: Police in the Australian state of Victoria on Thursday called on motorists to take extra care, as crash data suggested that afternoon is a dangerous period during winter.
Victoria Police noted in a statement that over the last five years, on average, 43 per cent of collisions resulting in injury occurred between midday and 6:00 p.m. local time in winter, Xinhua news agency reported.
There were around 7,800 injury collisions recorded during the time period between 2019 and 2023.
According to the state police, the period from 12 to 6 p.m. on Friday was regarded as the most dangerous time between June and August overall, with around 1,200 injury collisions and 21 fatal collisions registered over the five years.
On regional roads, injury collisions most commonly occurred on Saturdays between 12 and 6 p.m. local time during the winter months.
Victoria Police noted that the authority’s presence would be highly visible on major arterial roads and paths leading to alpine areas, given the snow season set to commence this weekend.
Last year, police issued more than 6,500 infringements statewide, with 2,652 motorists detected speeding, 366 detected for drink and drug driving offences, and 224 caught using their mobile phones behind the wheel.
“We know it’s a time of day when there’s a lot of traffic on the roads but in the colder months, it’s also darker earlier and motorists have to contend with wet weather,” said Victoria Police Road Policing Assistant Commissioner Glenn Weir.
“This analysis should serve as a reminder to all motorists heading into this long weekend to take extra care, particularly if the weather is challenging, and you have to factor in poor visibility or conditions like rain, ice, or snow,” Weir added.
