The 69-year-old killed in a head-on smash on a North Dorset road on Wednesday night is the eleventh to lose his life on Dorset's roads this year.

Among the deaths in the area was that of 16-year-old Jade Clark from Ringwood, who died on the A31 on February 24.

The crash sparked a campaign for a reduced speed limit on the A31, with Roads Minister Stephen Hammond considering a trial 50mph speed limit after a meeting with Ringwood councillors.

But Robert Smith, road safety education manager for Dorset County Council, said it was very rare for road layout or condition or the speed limit to be the chief cause of fatal crashes.

“There have been nine fatal crashes in our area this year, and these are all really tragic incidents,” he said.

“Almost all fatal crashes involve human error factors such as excessive speed, alcohol use, distraction and people not wearing seat belts.

“People see an accident in the paper, remember there was one there some time before, put two and two together and say “it must be the road”.

“There is no such thing as a dangerous road, there are only dangerous road users.

“Road safety is everyone’s responsibility. It is our role to try and get that message across through education and enforcement.”

Other fatalities this year include 70-year-old pedestrian Peter Kemp from Boscombe, who was involved in a collision with a car near Tesco Express in Christchurch Road on January 13.

On February 8 19-year-old passenger Mikey Maguire from Upton died when the car he was travelling in came off the road and struck a tree in Lytchett Matravers.

On February 22 64-year-old biker Derek Collings from Bournemouth died after a crash involving his Kawasaki motorbike on the A350 near Blandford St Mary, and on April 8 another motorcyclist, 29-year-old Richard King from Bridport, sustained fatal injuries in a collision on the B3157 Burton Bradstock to Swyre road.

Last month there were two crashes involving emergency vehicles. On April 14, popular headteacher Ali Mullany died when her Mini was in collision with a Dorset fire engine on the B3075.

The fire engine was on its way to another fatal collision on the neighbouring A35, in which 66-year-old Robert Taylor died after his Ford Focus collided with a tree.

Across the border in Hampshire on April 26, 42-year-old ambulance driver Gillian Randall and 88-year-old patient Francis Ironside, of Lymington, died in an ambulance after it came off the road and collided with a tree on the A337 Brockenhurst to Lyndhurst Road.

A third Dorset motorcyclist, 61-year-old Frank Bowen from West Howe, died on May 3 after losing control of his Aprilia Tuono 998 on the A30 in Wiltshire.

Pay attention to road safety, say police

DORSET Police Inspector Matt Butler, of the Force’s traffic section, said there were two things drivers could do to make the county’s roads safer.

“First, pay attention and take time to look properly at roundabouts and junctions,” he said. “Secondly, make sure you have plenty of time to react to whatever unexpected events might occur.

“If you are talking on the phone or texting, you don’t have time to react, if you are drunk, you haven’t got time to react, or if you are driving too fast for the conditions.”

He said officers had seen “time and time again” the devastation wrought on families as a result of serious crashes. These deaths are not just stats, they are real people with real families,” he said.

“Everybody dreads having two traffic officers knocking at their door. This is why we must continue to try and make the roads safer for everyone.”