Mr George said there was no room for complacency when driving on all types of roads, whether local, state or inter-state as traffic is expected to be busier than usual with people going away for the Australia Day weekend and families returning from summer holidays for the start of the new school term.

“Road safety is a priority for me across the electorate so I ask everyone, whether you are a local or a visitor, to please exercise caution while travelling in and out of our area this coming weekend,” Mr George said.

“Remember to stick to the speed limit and take it easy, don’t drive while tired, make sure you have a designated driver or organise another form of transport if you’re drinking, don’t touch your mobile phone and always wear a seatbelt.

“It was not a good year for road toll in 2017 with 392 people sadly losing their lives and hundreds more seriously injured in NSW.

“Within this tragic number, seven fatalities were from our electorate.

“The people who lost their lives aren’t just numbers, they are someone’s daughter or son within our community, someone’s father or mother, best friend or neighbour.

“When loss is local it can has devastating effects on families, workplaces and our wider social groups.

“Please don’t let someone you love or care about become a statistic.

“We need to start a new conversation with each other about the way we behave on our roads and bring the road toll closer Towards Zero”.

NSW Police will be cracking down on dangerous road behaviours by issuing fines and double demerit points over the weekend from 00.01am on Thursday, 25 January until 23.59pm on Sunday, 28 January 2018 in a statewide high visibility enforcement operation called Operation Safe Return.