Australia’s worst crash hotspots have been revealed, with a Melbourne road taking the title of the country’s most dangerous for the sixth consecutive year.

Plenty Road at Bundoora in Melbourne’s north-east was named Australia’s worst crash hotspot on Thursday as part of insurer AAMI’s 2023 crash index.

The index, based on more than 350,000 insurance claims between July 2022 and June 2023, also named repeat winners in Sydney, Brisbane and Perth.

Sydney’s most dangerous crash hotspot was the Hume Highway at Liverpool in the western suburbs, which ranked as Australia’s fourth-worst hotspot.

The highway has taken out the Sydney’s top spot for six consecutive years.

In Queensland, Gympie Road at Chermside in Brisbane’s north was named the most dangerous crash hotspot for the second year running, while in Perth, the Albany Highway at Cannington in the city’s south was again named the Western Australian capital’s most dangerous.

The Albany Highway has taken out Perth’s top hotspot in the crash index for nine of the past 10 years.

Adelaide, Canberra, the Northern Territory and Hobart all had new winners in 2023.

Most of the nation’s worst crash hotspots were major roads intersecting with local streets in high traffic industrial, educational and shopping precincts.

Adelaide’s most dangerous crash hotspot was West Terrace in the city’s west.

Canberra’s Monaro Highway at Hume took out the national capital’s top hotspot, while the NT’s worst road was the Stuart Highway at Katherine.

Hobart’s top crash hotspot was Argyle Street in the CBD, which moved up five places from 2022.

Source: AAMI

Nose-to-tail collisions were the most common types of crashes at hotspots except for in Hobart and the NT.

Hobart’s most common crashes happened while cars were parked, while in the NT, collisions with animals were most often to blame for crashes.

AAMI motor customer engagement head Tammy Hall warned drivers should always pay attention, and maintain a safe distance between their vehicles and the cars in front.

“Bumper-to-bumper collisions often happen during peak-hour traffic when the roads are busy, patience is wearing thin, drivers are tired from the day, and are in a rush to get to their destination,” Hall said.

“This is when accidents most commonly occur.”

Fridays was the day of the week with the most accidents nationally and the afternoon was the worst time for crashes, the insurer found.

Male drivers were more likely than women to crash, and motorists aged between 35 and 49 were the worst offenders.

The worst crash site – Plenty Road at Bundoora in Melbourne – has so far had fewer crashes in 2023 than last year. AAMI attributes much of that fall to a permanent reduction in the road’s speed limit.

– AAP