Transport for NSW is issuing a call to the 6.9 million drivers across the state to make the safest decisions on the road in 2025 and help reduce the annual road toll.
New South Wales recorded a total of 340 road deaths in 2024 – the same number of people lost in 2023.
Speed remains the biggest killer on New South Wales roads. In 2024, 136 people died in crashes where speed was a factor.
The New South Wales Government is doubling the number of locations where mobile speed cameras can be positioned on state roads and has also announced the upcoming trial of average speed cameras for private vehicles in two regional areas.
Similar to recent years, many deaths occurred in regional New South Wales.
In 2024, 234 people died on regional roads which was down 2 per cent on the previous year.
Fatigue remains a problem, with 77 fatalities attributed to driver tiredness last year.
Alcohol and drugs are also preventable issues that factor in too many deaths. However, in the first nine months of last year, the preliminary figures show a decrease from 2023 of 12 per cent for alcohol and 20 per cent for drugs.
As the New South Wales Government continues to invest in initiatives for all road users and the number of licence holders on the road continues to grow, there have been a number of areas of improvement in road trauma this year.
Deaths of bicycle riders have hit the equal lowest level in the state’s history since detailed records began in 1960, with five cyclists dying in 2024, and pedestrian deaths are lower than in previous years.
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There has been a rise in deaths of motorcyclists with 67 deaths, an increase of 34 per cent when compared to 2023 figures.
In response, the New South Wales Government is changing the Graduated Licensing Scheme for motorcyclists to improve novice rider training, testing standards, and licence requirements.
Also, legislation will be introduced in 2025 to enable mandatory drug and alcohol testing for drivers involved in a crash which results in grievous bodily harm.
The NSW Government will also continue to roll out around $1 billion in lifesaving infrastructure upgrades on regional and metropolitan roads through its Towards Zero Safer Roads Program and the joint federal/ state funded Road Safety Program.
The NSW Government introduced a number of measures in 2024 which will continue or expand in 2025.
They include:
- The trial of average speed cameras for light vehicles in 2025
- doubling roadside enforcement sites used for mobile speed cameras, with an additional 2,700 new sites where a camera can be deployed. Total enforcement hours will remain the same
- seatbelt enforcement via the state’s existing mobile phone cameras
- the demerit point return trial that encourages safe driving
- releasing more ratings for bicycle helmets as part of its star rating system
- removing a loophole to force all motorists driving on a foreign licence to convert to a New South Wales licence within six months
- implementing recommendations from the Demerit Point Integrity Taskforce to stamp out rorting of the system by mainly visiting foreign nationals
- signing the National Road Safety Data Agreement with the Commonwealth For further details on road death data visit.
John Graham, Minister for Roads said too many lives were lost on New South Wales roads in 2024.
“We should never become desensitised to the annual figure or accept that it should be as high as 340 as it has been for the last two years running,” Graham says.
“Every one of these 340 represents a family and network of loved ones and friends who will never be the same for having lost someone.”