Finding into death of Vicki Evelyn Webster
Deceased
Vicki Evelyn Webster
Demographics
63y, female
Date of death
2017-02-22
Finding date
2018-11-29
Cause of death
Head injuries sustained in a motor vehicle accident
AI-generated summary
Vicki Webster, a 63-year-old woman, died from head injuries sustained in a motor vehicle accident on Lake Rowan Road, Victoria. She swerved to the left to pass an oncoming vehicle, overcorrected to the right, left the road, and struck a tree at approximately 89 km/h. The accident occurred on a narrow country road with limited visibility due to crests and insufficient width for safe vehicle passing on the bitumen surface. No mechanical faults were found. The coroner identified systemic road safety issues: the 100 km/h speed limit was inappropriate for the road design, warning signage was absent, and the road was too narrow. Recommendations focused on reducing approach speeds, installing warning signs, and widening the road. The death was preventable through timely implementation of road safety improvements by council and VicRoads.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes.
Contributing factors
- Road design inadequate for safe vehicle passing
- Insufficient road width (4.6m) for two vehicles to pass on bitumen
- Limited visibility due to road crests
- Inappropriate 100 km/h speed limit for road conditions
- Absence of warning signs regarding crest and reduced speed recommendations
- Delayed response to road safety improvements by council and VicRoads
Coroner's recommendations
- VicRoads post speed limit signs on each side of the crest on Lake Rowan Road immediately in the vicinity of Ms Webster's accident scene (near Howells Road) reducing the approach speed to less than 100 km/h pursuant to section 8 of the Road Safety (Traffic Management) Regulations 2009 (Vic)
- VicRoads consider implementing speed reduction strategy in relation to the other crest on Lake Rowan Road (and its continuation as Boweya-st James Road) between Big Hill Road and Bungeet Road
- The Council, with the support of VicRoads, widen approaches to and the road on the crest in Lake Rowan Road in the vicinity of Ms Webster's accident scene near Howells Road as soon as possible
- The Council, within three months of receiving this Finding post 'crest' warning signs and speed advisory signs on the crest on Lake Rowan Road (and its continuation as Boweya-st James Road) between Big Hill Road and Bungeet Road
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