With thousands preparing to travel across the state in the coming weeks, a local lawyer is warning that the Sunshine Coast’s surge in holidaymakers and people on the move will put even more pressure on the annual North Coast death toll which is already 36 per cent higher than for the same period last year.
According to the latest Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads (TMR) data, 78 people have died on North Coast roads this year – which includes the Sunshine Coast, Moreton Bay and Wide Bay Burnett – making it the region with Queensland’s highest death toll, with more than double the average fatality count across Queensland’s other police regions.
Sunshine Coast personal injury lawyer Greg Spinda, Partner at Travis Schultz & Partners, said the combination of alcohol, drugs, holiday traffic and a sharp rise in vulnerable road-user deaths has created a “perfect storm” heading into Christmas.
“This region has recorded a staggering number of lives lost – 78 fatalities so far this year, which is not only 21 more than this time last year but also more than double the average of Queensland’s other police regions,” Mr Spinda said.
“When you look at the statewide picture, around one in four of Queensland’s road deaths this year have occurred right here in the North Coast region – a disproportionately high number on a per-capita basis.”
“If behaviour on our roads – and pathways – doesn’t change, Christmas could easily become one of the deadliest we’ve seen in years.”
Mr Spinda said two patterns are particularly troubling in both the latest trauma data and what he is seeing in practice – an escalation of poor driver behaviours, including intoxication, inattention and distraction, and increasingly severe injuries often linked to high-speed incidents.
According to TMR’s latest data, behavioural factors continue to dominate Queensland’s fatal crash profile – with almost half of those deaths now involving intoxication from alcohol or drugs, and a further one-third attributed to speed.
“We’re seeing far too many crashes where alcohol, drugs or poor behaviours are leading to catastrophic consequences in high-speed collisions,” Mr Spinda said.
“The people we represent are everyday people on their way to work, picking up the kids, going to do the shopping – and they’re the ones suffering life-changing injuries such as fractures, brain injuries, and significant psychological trauma, all because someone else chose to be a fool on the road.”
“A driver checking a message for two seconds can destroy a life. A rider buzzing through a crossing on an e-scooter can cause injuries that change someone’s future forever.”
Queensland is facing a surge in serious e-scooter harm. New analysis from the Jamieson Trauma Institute and RACQ shows 1,608 riders hospitalised in the first 10 months of 2025 – equivalent to five people every single day.
“These numbers reflect what we’re seeing on the Sunshine Coast – a steady stream of serious injuries from regular e-bike and e-scooter accidents,” Mr Spinda said.
“Many people don’t realise that in e-scooter and e-bike crashes, the rider themselves is liable for harm they cause. Nor that, those injured may have little recourse to seek recovery of their medical costs or lost income because of the woeful insurance coverage for these devices.”
“We’ve had enquiries where someone has been struck by a speeding e-scooter while walking on the footpath, and they’re shocked to learn there’s no compulsory insurance – leaving the injured person with huge medical costs unless the rider can pay, and often, they can’t. With injuries now resembling high-speed car-crash trauma, the legal, medical and financial fallout can be enormous.”
“I applaud the State government’s inquiry into personal mobility devices and hope to see a swift response the committee’s recommendations once they are finalised in March 2026. The problem is, at the current rate, we are likely to see many more fatalities and injuries before then.”
With more pedestrians out at night, more families on holidays and more children walking to the beach or cafés during the summer break, Mr Spinda is urging the community to remember what’s truly at risk.
“The true impact of road trauma extends far beyond the Christmas break,” Mr Spinda said.
“Behind every fatality is a family that never recovers. Behind every serious injury is a person who may never work the same way again, never play sport again, or never live without pain. One thoughtless moment doesn’t just derail a family’s Christmas – it can derail their entire future.”
