Australia has recorded its highest annual road toll since 2010, with 1337 people killed in the 12 months to May 31, a 4.8 per cent increase on the previous year.

Figures from the Australian Automobile Association show the rise is partly driven by an increase in cyclist and pedestrian deaths. The number of cyclists killed increased from 30 to 41, while pedestrian deaths rose from 166 to 192

AAA managing director Michael Bradley said the national figures highlighted the failure of the National Road Safety Strategy, introduced in 2021 with a goal to halve road deaths by 2030.

“Far from halving roads deaths as planned, this latest data shows this strategy has seen fatalities increase 21.9 per cent since its inception,” Mr Bradley said.

“This strategy is due for review and the Federal Government needs to show national leadership and ensure this review gets to the bottom of this worsening crisis.

“This strategy saw governments commit to road safety interventions that are either not working or not being delivered.

“The upcoming review needs to urgently clarify what’s working, what’s not, and how we need to change the way we’re managing road trauma across Australia.”

Locally, there have been 10 fatal collisions in the Goulburn Valley so far this year, down from 16 at the same time in 2023.

This year’s figure includes three fatal crashes in the Shepparton area (Mooroopna, Shepparton and Dhurringile), four in the Benalla area (Goughs Bay, Goorambat, Marysville and Merrijig), and three in the Mitchell area (Creightons Creek, Clonbinane and Avenel).

According to the Bureau of Infrastructure and Transport Research Economics, only South Australia and the Northern Territory saw a reduction in road deaths over the past year. The largest year-on-year increases were recorded in Tasmania (43.3 per cent), the ACT (28.6 per cent), and Western Australia (12.1 per cent).

BITRE research from 2022 estimated the annual cost of road trauma to the Australian economy at $27 billion.

In 2024, Federal Transport Minister Catherine King secured commitments from state and territory governments to improve the transparency of road safety data to help inform policymaking.

Under the Federation Funding Agreement, infrastructure, states are required to provide the Commonwealth with detailed data, including injury severity, driving behaviour, crash circumstances, road conditions and vehicle information.

According to the Australian Automobile Association, it remains unclear whether the data has been received by the Commonwealth and if so, which parts of it have been published.

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Wednesday, 14th January 2026

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