A MOTORCYCLIST has become the second fatality on the region’s roads in the space of 24 hours when he lost control of his bike on the Western Freeway near Ballan on Friday afternoon.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The man died at the scene after the motorcycle he was travelling on careered into a safety barrier about 2.45pm.
The man’s body was laying almost 100m away from where his bike ended up as emergency services including police, ambulance and CFA worked together to determine the cause of the crash.
The freeway was closed Ballarat-bound for most of the afternoon from Ballan with traffic diverted through Gordon. Melbourne-bound lanes remained open, but traffic was forced to travel at a slower pace.
Late last night, the man’s identity had not been released publicly.
The death is the 11th on Victorian roads this year and comes less than 24 hours after a single cab ute struck a tree and caught fire at Homebush near Avoca. The man involved in that crash also died at the scene.
Meanwhile, emergency crews were also called out to two separate accidents, minutes apart from each other on the Midland Highway towards Daylesford also on Friday afternoon. In one of those crashes, which happened near Newlyn, a woman in her 60s was transported to Ballarat Base Hospital in a stable condition with back injuries.
Police have also attended serious collisions in Sturt Street and Howitt Street over the past two day.
Police are reminding drivers to pay particular attention on the roads given the rain in the last few days after the prolonged dry spell.
Roads can become extra slippery due to oil on the roads once it gets wet after a long dry period and could potentially cause accidents, particularly on high speed roads. Police said it was important that motorists not only kept on or below the speed limit, but also drove to the conditions.
Ballarat itself has seen 3.8mm of rain in the past 48 hours, the first rain of any significance this year.
Anyone who witnessed any of the crashes in the past two days is asked to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
Have you signed up to The Courier's daily newsletter and breaking news emails? You can register below and make sure you are up to date with everything that's happening in Ballarat.