NSW Farmers have issued a fresh safety warning to rural travellers this National Road Safety Week as the state’s road network remains riddled with billions of dollars in damages.

With long distances, additional hazards like kangaroos, feral pigs and sharing the road with agricultural machinery, rough surfaces and eroded edges can create a deadly mix.

The warning comes as motoring website www.drive.com.au has ranked the Newell Highway the second most dangerous highway.

‘’Out of the 340 people who passed away on New South Wales roads in 2024, approximately 68 per cent – or 234 people – died on regional roads.

"The Newell and Pacific highways ranked first in terms of the highest rate of collision, with 10 fatal crashes in 2024.

"The Hume and New England highways followed in second, both with eight, while the Central Coast, Gwydir, Princes and Snowy Mountain freeways recorded four deaths each.’’

A recent report by NRMA estimated $3.4 billion in funding was needed by NSW’s local councils to repair their roads to a safe condition. 

NRMA’s Peter Khoury is travelling statewide to put the case to Federal and State Governments for more funding and was in Orange on Wednesday.

NSW Farmers’ Wagga Branch Chair David Meiklejohn said the state of the roads in rural areas were a disgrace, with the transport of food from farm to fork becoming increasingly impossible.

“You only have to drive out the farm gate and you’re faced with everything from dangerous potholes that can ruin your tyres to whole sections of road crumbled into oblivion,” Mr Meiklejohn said. 

“Floods have left many roads near impassable in the north, while down south, a similar neglect to repair our roads has meant we’re battling to get fodder on farm and truck livestock off – making this drought even harder than it already is. 

“If you’re planning on driving anywhere in rural NSW, my message to you is simple: buckle up, and be ready for the roads to be a mess.”

Mr Meiklejohn said an unprecedented effort would be necessary to get NSW’s rural and regional roads back on track, with all levels of government urged to immediately invest in road repairs and upgrades across the state. 

“Boosting federal support for Financial Assistance Grants to fix our roads would go a long way to getting us back on track, but we also need to see billions, not millions, in funding from our state and federal governments to shift the dial,” Mr Meiklejohn said.

“Every day we leave our roads like this is another day where our families, our friends, our truckies and our tourists are put at unnecessary risk. 

“The productivity benefits that would also flow if we could just get inputs on-farm – and food and fibre off it – would be second to none.

“It’s a no-brainer: fix our roads, and you’ll keep our families safe, and food on the table for the nation.”