A police force says it is "acutely aware" of a worrying rise in the number of fatal crashes in one county which has already seen 15 people lose their lives this year - but is unsure of what lies behind the increase.
Since January, 12 fatal collisions have taken place in Norfolk, leading to 15 deaths.
Seven of those came in the space of just a few days, including one incident near King's Lynn in which three people were killed.
During the same period last year, 11 people had died on the county's roads by the end of March.
Officers admit they are finding it difficult to pinpoint exactly what is behind the increase, but early indications suggest that many of the collisions have been down to driver error which can include failing to look properly at junctions or misjudging speed.
"I've been a roads policing officer now for 20 years, and in my career, I've never known such a short space of time where we've had so many fatalities on the roads," PC Chris Leah from Norfolk Police said.
"I can't put my finger on why it's been happening. It hasn't been just cars involved. We've had pedestrians and commercial vehicles involved as well.
"But what's behind it? I honestly don't know."
In a bid to identify problems before they potentially lead to crashes, officers from the force have been taking part in action days which involves targeting certain traffic hotspots.
Vehicles are then brought back to a site where they are checked thoroughly for any defects such as flat tyres or whether goods are secured correctly in the back of HGVs.
It also enables police to download data from devices like tachographs which monitor driving times and rest periods.
"This is definitely a preventative measure in terms of speaking to drivers and engagement," said Insp Will Drummond.
"It's something we do on a daily basis anyway but it's not all about prosecution. It can sometimes just be about words of advice. So, it's just that shared responsibility - we'd just ask each other to look after each other a bit more."
Officers are keen to stress that a momentary loss of concentration, caused by glancing at a phone for example, could have devastating consequences.
"It literally is that split-second that could not only change the lives of others by somebody that you're potentially going to seriously injure or kill, but it's actually going to change your own life as well," PC Leah said.
"Not only is, potentially, that driver going to be looking at prison, they've got to live with what they've done for the rest of their life."
Comments