The crash on State Highway 1 near Taihape. Photo: Supplied / Google Maps
The biker community is reeling after three motorcyclists died near Taihape at the weekend.
The crash on Saturday involving four motorbikes and a ute happened on State Highway 1 at Utiku.
Rob Miller, a life member of the Road Pirates Social Motorcycle club, told RNZ the riders had been taking part in an event organised by the Manawatu Road Pirates. He said those killed were from a range of clubs including their club, the Bay MC Motorcyclone Club and the Sulphur City Motorcycle Club.
Road safety expert Professor Simon Kingham said he did not know any details of the crash, but that tragic motorbike accidents were far too common.
"Historically the crash rates for people on motorbikes are higher than any other mode driven, and I think that's partly because of the vulnerability of people," he said.
Kingham said it was important drivers were well prepared and trained, and that roads had median barriers where possible.
"We can make any road safe to drive at high speeds, you can put in things like median barriers but they are of course a very expensive way to engineer roads," he said.
He said while it was unclear what caused the accident and whether barriers would have helped, he was an advocate for slower speeds in some areas.
"We can engineer roads to be safe and we can use lower speed limits to keep us safe," Kingham said.
Figures from the Ministry of Transport show 255 people have died on the roads so far in 2024.