After 13 deaths in the past seven months, the south-west is on track for its worst road toll since 2006.

Figures from the Transport Accident Commission (TAC) show 18 road deaths in the Warrnambool police region — which includes Corangamite and Moyne shires in the 12 months to June this year.

Alarmingly, that’s up 350 per cent on the four deaths recorded in 2013 and it makes our region one of the state’s worst.

Most other regional centres are faring much better with Bendigo, for example, down by 67 per cent.

So why is it happening?

Why is it that after all the messaging from the TAC and the improvement of safety technology in vehicles, we are bucking the downward trend across the state for the first time in almost eight years? The appalling condition of the region’s roads must surely be a factor. Good roads are safe roads, bad roads are not. It’s that simple.

Last week Foxhow Road, north-east of Camperdown, was described as the worst arterial road in the state.

Foxhow Road is particularly bad, but as most regular drivers in the region know, there are numerous others like it.

Exasperated readers of this newspaper regularly update us on their near misses or their discovery of a new stretch of awful highway in this region.

Visitors from outside the region are also horrified.

Both state and federal governments continue to spruik their credentials with regard to funding or promised funding, but progress is painfully slow.

Meanwhile, the death toll is rising and people are starting to realise that, not only does a degraded roads network cost a fortune in repairs to cars and tyres, it might also be costing lives.

Heavy rain has contributed to the poor state of some roads recently, making them worse than ever.

Drivers are taking their lives into their hands when they take to the region’s roads.

 It is clearly unacceptable and we have been putting up with it for far too long.