A man in his 20s died last night in a single motorcycle crash in Palmerston.

Senior Sergeant John Ginnane said the crash happened on Chung Wah Terrace shortly after 10pm.

“A witness immediately reported the crash to 000, however the man was declared deceased at the scene.

“A full investigation is now underway to determine the circumstances behind the crash, and a comprehensive report will be prepared for the Coroner.

“However, at this early stage in the investigative process it would appear that a person holding a learner’s permit to ride a motorcycle has spent several hours in a licensed premises before the collision, was riding a motorcycle too powerful for the conditions of his licence, and was travelling at excessive speed immediately before he lost control and died.

“The loss of any life on our roads is always a tragedy. Unfortunately, and as with the vast majority of fatal collisions dealt with by police and emergency services, this one was entirely preventable. The trauma this incident may cause this person’s family, friends, workmates and associates can never be quantified. The police and emergency services people see enough death and associated trauma as it is, without having to deal with incidents like this that should never have happened.

“This is the twentieth life lost on Territory roads this year. That’s almost three times the suffering inflicted on our community than at the same time in 2021, and again we are seeing an over-representation of younger drivers having their lives unnecessarily cut short.

“It would appear our road safety messaging isn’t getting through to parts of our community.  Yesterday, on the same day this latest life was lost, police issued 201 Traffic Infringement Notices for speeding offences in the Greater Darwin area alone. If people wonder why police have no tolerance for drivers exceeding the speed limit – last night’s tragedy is why.”