Serious car crashes in Canberra down in 2020

ACT police have revealed crashes resulting in injury are down 20 per cent in 2020, compared to the same time last year.

Despite the fall, the number of fatal collisions in the ACT has remained steady, with six deaths on the road in 2020, the same number as the year before.

ACT chief police officer Neil Gaughan said the drop in serious crashes was partly due to some of the impacts of COVID-19 seen earlier this year.

"Certainly in the months from March, there was a significant reduction in the number of accidents, as most people were working from home," he said.

"There was a stark reduction in the number of serious collisions, but there was a large increase in the number of high-speed incidents, and maybe that was because people thought that they had the road to themselves."

In the initial stages of lockdown in the ACT, police in Canberra hit out at speeding drivers with some motorists being clocked at driving more than 100km/h above the speed limit.

The high levels of speeding incidents have continued throughout the year as Canberra came out of COVID restrictions and more traffic returned to the road.

In one notable incident in late November, police caught two drivers speed racing at almost double the speed limit.

Deputy commissioner Gaughan said he was angered by the number of such incidents throughout the year.

"Overall, there has been a lot of high-range speeding incidents, which is frustrating and there have been some extremely high speeds and there is no excuse," he said.

"Some people are being stupid."

The ACT's chief police officer said while it was reassuring there had been a reduction in serious crashes during 2020, there were still a large number that had occurred.

"We have some some serious collisions in recent weeks," he said.

One incident in October led to two drivers being taken to hospital in critical conditions after a head-on collision on William Hovell Drive, leading to long delays and road closures.

Ahead of the Christmas period and summer holidays, deputy commissioner Gaughan urged for drivers to be cautious on the roads, particularly around shopping centres.

"Last-minute gift shopping can be stressful, but don't let your rush to find a park at the shops lead to a Christmas crash," he said. "The festive season is a busy time for retailers and when the shops are full, so are the car parks and adjacent roadways."

Deputy commissioner Gaughan said drivers should also be careful of pedestrians along with children in crowded car parks.

"With tight roads and a costant flow of drivers parking and reversing, parking lots can be tricky to navigate at the best of times so drivers should exercise caution in the Christmas congestion."