Some wild driving and high speeds on a particular stretch of road between Otautau and Tuatapere have been causing great concern for local residents recently with one resident who’s been in the area for just over three years reporting that she’s aware of 18 car crashes in the area in that time.

Merrivale Road, which links Tuatapere to Otautau, and Gill Road is the main area of concern and the resident says she’s “thankful there are no white crosses” dotting the roadside.

“Tonight alone we’ve had three crashes along the 200m stretch, one being passed on a blind corner and clipped then spun out, and two vehicles following each other on the 55km corner, crashing and taking out fences that we have only just replaced again,” the woman’s Wednesday (15 April) post says.

She could not be contacted for further comment.

She and many of those who commented on her post are concerned that there could have been a fatality in the area and people are being urged to slow down and drive to the conditions.

In a separate incident a mother posted a day earlier that the back of her daughter’s Mazda was hit near Otautau on her way to Tuatapere by what appeared to be a black four-wheel drive ute, causing her to run off the road into a ditch. She claims the black vehicle had allegedly overtaken her daughter on a blind corner.

Inspector Stu Harvey says Police are aware of a number of incidents in that area and officers locally are trying to rectify the problem, keeping special watch out for speeding on the roads.

“People have been driving like idiots."

"There’s been a lot of speeding and we’re certainly aware of it."

"Local officers will be focusing on this,” he says.