Recent data suggests that South Australia is not on track to meet its road safety targets. In the first half of 2025 alone, 38 lives were lost on the roads, including nine pedestrians, and a concerning 402 people suffered serious injuries.
According to the mid-year crash data analysed by the RAA, the number of pedestrians killed in metropolitan Adelaide has seen a 137 per cent increase compared to the five-year average. Two-thirds of the pedestrian fatalities occurred during darkness, and at least one-third of these incidents involved hit-and-run accidents.
The data also highlights a distressing trend among older road users aged 70 and above, who accounted for a quarter of all road-related deaths in the first half of the year. This age group has seen a 16.3 per cent increase in fatalities compared to the five-year average. Multiple fatalities have occurred on four specific roads, Dukes Highway, South Road, Uley Road, and Echunga Road. The proportion of lives lost in metropolitan Adelaide made up 45 per cent of the total, which is up from the usual 33 per cent.
Across the nation, while five out of eight states and territories reported a rise in road deaths compared to their five-year average, South Australia is one of the three that did not demonstrate an increase. The state must achieve fewer than 75 deaths and 614 serious injuries by the end of the year to stay on target with its Road Safety Strategy goal of reducing fatalities by 50 per cent and serious injuries by at least 30 per cent by 2031.
Based on the current figures, with 402 serious injuries already recorded by mid-2025, it is predicted that the state will far exceed its serious injury reduction target. While the figures for lives lost are closer to the target, with 38 fatalities in the first six months, the overall outlook remains grim.
RAA Senior Traffic Engineer Matt Vertudaches shared, “Once again this has been a devastating start to the year on our roads.
“We all have a role to play in reducing road trauma – whether we’re behind the wheel, or as a passenger or another road user.
“While it can be difficult, it is important that families have open conversations about safe transport options for older loved ones who may be more vulnerable in a crash.”
