What has gone wrong with the road toll?

The Herald reports:

More people have died on New Zealand roads this year than the entire amount killed in 2013.

AA has issued a warning to road users following the concerning figures, which show 255 people have been killed this year compared to 253 in 2013.

AA motoring affairs general manager Mike Noon said 2013’s toll was a record low, but with 81 days left of this year, things were not looking good.

“In 2013 New Zealand had a record low road toll of 253 deaths but since then the number of road deaths has sadly gone back up,” he said.

“The AA is extremely sad and concerned to see more people hurt and dying in crashes.

“Our population has grown and the amount people are driving is increasing but the question of why we have seen the road toll go up significantly from 2013 is something authorities need to be looking at.”

Comparing to the low of 2013 is a bit silly, but we do seem to have a problem with a growing road toll.

The 255 to date this year compares to 243 to date in 2015. So it is a small increase, but still against a trend of decreases most years.