SA authorities want zero road toll over Easter

Road safety authorities are pleading for South Australians to record another fatality-free Easter after the equal lowest monthly road toll on record in March.

Three people were killed on South Australian roads last month - bucking a trend over the past four years where March was our most dangerous month.

The equal lowest monthly road toll in March came after a horror Christmas and New Year period on the state's roads, with 20 deaths in December and 13 in January.

The last time SA had three road fatalities recorded in a month was in September 2013.

SA Police could not provide data from before January 2007 but it is understood last month's toll was the equal lowest on record.

Police and Transport Department data showed there were a collective 57 deaths in March between 2010 and 2014 - more than any other month and equal to the number of deaths in January for the same time period.

Police, the Motor Accident Commission and SA Government yesterday launched their Easter weekend road safety campaign.

We urge people to plan and take rest breaks

Last Easter, there were no deaths on the state's roads and nine serious injuries.

Assistant Commissioner Linda Williams called for a back-to-back fatality-free Easter.

"This is about people making sensible decisions so they can spend Easter with their family," she said.

Ms Williams said fatigue was prevalent during holiday periods, especially when people finished work on the eve of Good Friday and jumped into a car to get to their holiday destination.

"They've already done a day of work and are about to embark on a long journey," she said. "We urge people to plan and take rest breaks."

Motor Accident Commission road safety general manager Michael Cornish said fatigue was responsible for 30 per cent of fatal crashes in SA.

You won't get to your destination any quicker when the roads are busy by overtaking in dangerous circumstances

"We've seen some very catastrophic crashes on our roads in the past few months as a result of fatigue," he said.

"What we see is extreme overtaking...in heavy traffic on holiday weekends. "Really all you're doing is overtaking a slow moving vehicle to catch up to the next slow moving vehicle.

"You won't get to your destination any quicker when the roads are busy by overtaking in dangerous circumstances." He urged people to take a 15-minute rest every two hours and be patient on the road.

Road Safety Minister Tony Piccolo echoed advice given by police and the commission, saying shaving a few minutes off the drive time was not worth the risk of death.