Crashes have claimed the lives of 21 people in the Oxley and New England police districts in the past 12 months.

Five of those - almost a quarter - have tragically been killed in the past month alone.

"One life lost is one too many," Peel Highway Patrol manager Inspector Kelly Wixx said.

A traumatic crash near Walcha earlier this month left a teenage girl and a young woman dead, an infant hospitalised and a young man fighting for life.

Barely a week later, a horrific head-on between two utes near Narrabri killed a teenage boy and two men.

Inspector Wixx told the Leader crashes in the country were felt deeply.

"Any death in a small community is going to have a ripple effect," she said.

"It's just a tragic event when one life is lost, let alone multiple."

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Inspector Wixx said highway patrol police were always out in force - whether it be through random testing, speed enforcement or patrols - with the aim of reducing road trauma.

"Everything we do is with that in mind," she said.

There were also exactly 21 road deaths in the Peel region last financial year.

Officers are continuing the long-term campaign with the goal of zero fatalities.

Inspector Wixx said local police had a focus on fatigue as one of the big risk factors when residents get behind the wheel on rural and regional roads.

Long stretches between towns, poor sleep, long days - or nights - at work and the chance of overestimating abilities all came into play.

She said police had noticed an increase in single-vehicle crashes in the past year.

Officers are also working hard to deter drivers from hitting the road after having a few drinks or taking recreational drugs.

She urged travellers to drive to conditions, especially on poorly maintained roads or with animals around; listen to their bodies if tired; plan stops and follow all traffic rules.

Police were called to 346 serious injury collisions in the past 12 months, and 402 in the year before that.

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