Another local life has been tragically taken and another family left shattered as police fear a worrying post-lockdown trend is continuing on Ballarat roads.
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A 48-year-old Napoleons woman has become the latest casualty of the tragic past few weeks on our roads, killed in a two-car collision between two cars on Ballarat-Colac Road just after 8pm on Sunday.
Two males, one from each car, were taken to hospital with minor injuries after the crash.
The age of the males has not been released by police.
The woman killed was the passenger in one of the vehicles.
Police say a number of factors including distraction, inattention, speed and driver experience are being investigated.
"Distraction and inattention are the key messages here. We implore people to concentrate," said Ballarat Highway Patrol Senior Sergeant Stuart Gale.
Country people die on country roads, and more often than not, it's close to home.
- Ballarat Highway Patrol Senior Sergeant Stuart Gale
"We need to be courteous on the roads and reducing our speed. Speed is always a factor in these collisions."
It is the second fatality in the Ballarat region in less than a week, following the death of a 71-year-old Burrumbeet man on the Avenue of Honour on Tuesday.
It's a trend that has Ballarat's top traffic policeman concerned as more people take to the roads at the end of lockdown measures across regional Victoria.
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"We've now seen two fatalities in a very short space of time. These are very tragic incidents, but in saying that they are totally avoidable," said Senior Sergeant Stuart Gale.
"We do hold some significant concerns.
"We saw a trend of an increase in trauma the last time we came out of lockdown and we are seeing this again. This is the second life lost on our roads in the past week."
There have been 161 lives lost on Victorian roads this year, compared to 202 at the same time last year.
Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or file a confidential report online at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au.
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