Police are appealing for drivers to take more care on the roads after a horror crash left a P-plater in hospital.
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Emergency crews rushed to the two-car collision at the Gregory Street West and Ring Road intersection in Cardigan on Saturday, the second crash at that intersection in a fortnight.
Ballarat police Sergeant Jamie Jordan said passers-by had stopped to extract the driver from one car, which was on its side and on fire.
"They were quick thinking and got that car back on its wheels and got that girl out of the car while it was on fire," he said.
"Thanks for your quick thinking and actions - it was dangerous for them to do that, but without the emergency services being there, if she had been trapped in that car it would have been far worse for her."
Sergeant Jordan said police were investigating the cause of the crash, and will interview the other driver in the coming days.
"That intersection has caused us a bit of grief this week, but the onus is still on people to drive to the conditions, and if they're not sure, they need to slow down and ensure they're approaching any intersection at the right speed - gravel or asphalt, wet or dry," he said.
"A number of people use that intersection daily and get through without a collision - so we have to put it back on people to pay attention to the driving that they're doing, and the conditions they're finding themselves in."
Last week, the City of Ballarat confirmed a roundabout has been planned for the intersection, but would not begin construction until upgrades at the other end of Gregory Street West are complete.
In May, the right of way was reversed - drivers on Ring Road had to give way to traffic coming off the Link Road roundabout and Gregory Street, but this decision was quickly reversed after an outcry.
Sergeant Jordan said the roundabout would slow people down, but "people still have collisions at roundabouts" - he urged drivers who may be getting back on the road as restrictions ease to re-familiarise themselves with traffic before the 'ring of steel' lifts.
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"Not many people would admit to being a bit rusty, but go for a drive where you're comfortable and get in the swing of things - when people haven't been for a drive for a while, it takes some time to get used to it," he said.
"We've seen even during lockdown that the road toll, as a whole of the state, has continued to climb, and Ballarat and surrounding areas haven't been immune to that.
"While we say there hasn't been as much traffic on the road, there's still a reasonable amount of trauma happening and it's always avoidable."
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