A road is a road, the surface beneath your car. It’s not safe or unsafe. You could drive on the Barton highway on a rainy night at 40kph and it’d probably feel safe.

What is safe, or unsafe, is the concentration of drivers, their expectations, their judgement, their skills, and their ability to assess the road and conditions.

Also, last night would have been perfect for unexpected foggy patches, even if you’re familiar with the road.
BOM: Areas of fog and patches of light frost this morning.

KB1971 said :

…Driver training is one of the keys to reducing the road tolls, this young fella obviously had not had anough experience behind the wheel to control the vehicle correctly (or he fell asleep & woke suddenly), you get that from training. City drivers are especially vulnerable to having accidents in the country for a variety of reasons, namely lack of experience.

Either way, people really need to stop blaming infrastructure for these things. Its just too easy to get your licence.

I don’t necessarily agree with all of what you say, but there is merit to your basic argument. I think it is also a really good point about driving on country roads, especially unfamiliar roads and at night. In theory, there’s not too much to it, but the fact you can get a full licence without ever having to be tested under such conditions raises a few serious questions IMO.

Tragedy? Yes

Was the road at fault? No

Condolences to the families involved.

As to the condition of the Barton Highway I used to drive the road to and from Yass about 330 days a year for three years or so back in the early 90s.

I have never had any major issues with the road. But then I was about the same age as the deceased in the OP when I started travelling the route regularly, so even if there were problems with the road I probably wouldn’t have cared.

Now I probably drive the Barton Hwy 2 or 3 times a year and I have noticed how the growth of the trees has drastically altered the sight lines around and through corners. The volume of traffic would have increased tenfold, or more, for the daily commute I expect. It must suck, actually.

Who knows what caused the accident with this young kid, but the assumption made by vg at post #2 cold very well be accurate. But we may never know.

I used to fly on that road back in the day, so I’m certainly in no position to cast judgment, other than to say 18 year olds (esp males) like driving fast. Nothing will change that.

niceplacetolive said :

vg, the Barton Highway is not fine. It is a sealed bullock track that is unsafe and needs to be upgraded as a matter of priority.

Totally disagree, it is a well contsructed bit of road with large shoulders and no sharp off camber corners to trap you on (go for a drive on the Bobeyan road, it has the same speed limit). You can safely do 100km/h along it with no issues at all.

As Me no Fry said, its the volume of traffic (partly) but the largest issue is the way drivers treat the road (Kings Highway is a victim of this affliction as well). Yep, its 40-50km of single lane road but you get a couple of extremes of drivers out there, the ones who will sit at 20km/h under the limit due to lack of confidence causing the traffic to bank up & the people who have to drive as fast as they can to get there & will overtake anything at all costs. Monaro Highway in the ski season is another example.

Driver training is one of the keys to reducing the road tolls, this young fella obviously had not had anough experience behind the wheel to control the vehicle correctly (or he fell asleep & woke suddenly), you get that from training. City drivers are especially vulnerable to having accidents in the country for a variety of reasons, namely lack of experience.

Either way, people really need to stop blaming infrastructure for these things. Its just too easy to get your licence.

vg, you should reserve judgement on the cause of the crash. But regardless of the cause, the Barton Highway is not fine. The road is barely adequate for the volume of traffic it carries, in places there is very little room for error (that is, safe places to run off the road – for whatever reason) and too many roadside obstacles to crash into if you make an error. Major roads shouldn’t be do or die places where an error costs you your life.

On that topic, I think it is nothing short of shameful that the NSW RTA thinks it is appropriate to place those massive road “safety” structures on the highways, overhanging the roads. They are going up everywhere – have seen them on the Clyde Mountain and the Hume highway up to Goulburn.

Barton used to freak me out as a P plater, being overtaken bby trucks that weer much more confident than me.

Skidbladnir, I saw that car this morning. I saw the skidmarks and I saw the tree. The police will investigate the details, and we shouldn’t jump to conclusions because of a driver’s age, time of travelling or brand of vehicle..

The fatality occured in an area where large trees are located within two metres of the very limited road verge, almost opposite where a fatality occurred a couple of years ago. The particular area also has a large kangaroo population, is winding and undulating. Almost opposite the Valencia Estate.

What we do need is a community banding together to support safety improvements on the Barton Highway.

vg, the Barton Highway is not fine. It is a sealed bullock track that is unsafe and needs to be upgraded as a matter of priority.

Canberra is 40km SE of Jeir…

Anyway vg is right, time (so probably exhaustion also), age, single vehicle leaving the road…
The highway isn’t at fault.

caf said :

I think NSW Police may need to buy some new magnetic compasses. Nowhere on the Barton Highway is to the south-east of Canberra.

You beat me to it…..40km SE of Canberra is Michelego, or more correctly, Jerangle.

I think NSW Police may need to buy some new magnetic compasses. Nowhere on the Barton Highway is to the south-east of Canberra.

The road is fine. Just put the age, time and the fact its a single vehicle accident together. It is a tragedy but I’d guess an avoidable one

Truly truly tragic. We need a safer Barton Highway and we need it now. My thoughts are with the family.