Almost 70 per cent of road deaths occur in regional NSW, sparking a statewide inquiry to investigate ways to lower the staggering toll.

Gilmore Federal MP Fiona Phillips has backed the initiative - launched by the state government’s Committee on Road Safety - to reduce regional road trauma caused by speeding, fatigue, drink and drug driving

Ms Phillips, a former chair of the NSW Black Spot Consultative Panel, says road deaths and accidents have a significant health and economic impact on regional communities like Kiama and the Shoalhaven.

She says the Albanese government is “progressively doubling” local council Roads to Recovery funding from $500 million to $1 billion a year to ensure “more potholes are being fixed, more roads are being resealed, and more drainage work is being done”.

“Road safety is always a priority and that is why the Albanese Labor Government has been increasing funding for local roads since 2022,” she says.

Funding has also increased under the Safer Local Roads and Infrastructure Program, says Ms Phillips, along with Black Spot Program funding increasing to $150 million a year “so more projects are eligible, including here on the South Coast”.

She says “critical infrastructure projects” like the Far North Collector Rd, Jervis Bay Flyover and Nowra and Milton-Ulladulla bypasses “will improve road safety, connectivity and liveability for decades to come.”

Road Safety Committee chair Greg Warren says regional communities continue to have a disproportionately high number of road fatalities.

"Our inquiry is looking at whether current strategies and programs are effective in reducing driving risk factors, such as fatigue, speeding and drink driving, that increase the likelihood of road crashes," says the Campbelltown MP.

The committee is calling on community members and stakeholders from regional and rural communities, road safety experts, community organisations, local councils, first responders and healthcare workers to provide submissions to the inquiry before July 25.

More information, including the inquiry's terms of reference and how to make a submission, is available on the committee's website.