On Tuesday, a motorbike rider died near Hanging Rock, while last week two people were killed in a horrific car and caravan crash near Walcha, which left two others in hospital.

Assistant Commissioner Michael Corboy said it had been a horrible start to the year, with 11 fatalities in just over a week, 10 of which were in regional areas.

“The most disturbing statistic out of that is six of those were passengers,” he said.

Speed, alcohol and fatigue are the big killers on regional NSW roads.

“Most people are killed when they’re driving a car, the car leaves the road and hits a tree or another vehicle,” Assistant Commissioner Corboy said.

“Most of those are fatigue or speed, or a mixture of both. We’re encouraging passengers to remind drivers of their responsibilities – and most importantly, drivers need to stop and take a break on those long trips.

“The other message I’m getting out there is, it’s not going to be the back roads anymore.

“We’re going to in those little towns, we’re going be on those roads where people think it’s OK to speed or it’s OK to have a few beers.

“We’re going to be there and we’re going to be there to catch you.”

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