Seven people - including two pedestrians hit by a train - have died in separate incidents in a deadly nine hours on the nation's roads.
And the toll could go higher with several people critically injured in the spate of crashes.
National manager for road policing Superintendent Steve Greally said last night's fatalities came off the back of a "disastrous" month on our roads.
"Seven people. That's seven families [affected]. That's seven lives that have ended over 24 hours, that were all here when we woke up yesterday morning...yet today they are not.
"It's just so sudden. It's so hard for those families to deal with."
Two people died after being hit by a train in Papakura, South Auckland just after 11pm last night.
A southbound train, travelling from Papakura to Pukekohe, hit the victims at the railway crossing with Boundary Rd.
Police said both people died as a result of the impact.
The Police Disaster Victim Identification unit was attending the scene to recover the bodies.
The incident has been referred to the coroner.
Just before midnight, two more people were killed after the car they were travelling in hit a tree in Kumeu, west Auckland.
The single car incident happened on Access Rd.
And a female died after three cars collided just north of Towai in Northland on Friday afternoon.
The three-car crash happened on State Highway 1.
Two separate crashes in the South Island left two people dead and a number injured.
One person was killed and another is in a critical condition after a crash on SH65 near Lewis Pass in the Buller District.
A truck believed to be from PBT Transport collided with a van at 9.10pm last night.
Canterbury District Health Board said one male was still in a critical condition in Christchurch Hospital this afternoon, and a female injured in the accident was now in a stable condition.
Police said three others suffered moderate to serious injuries.
The critically injured person was flown to Christchurch Hospital and the other four were also taken to hospital.
The Serious Crash Unit was investigating and police were working to inform next of kin.
One person also died after a serious crash on Waimate Highway (SH1) in South Canterbury, involving three vehicles.
Four people were also injured, two moderately and two seriously, in the accident which happened in Morven just after 4pm yesterday.
One of the seriously injured occupants was airlifted to Dunedin Hospital and the other three were taken to Timaru Hospital.
SH1 was closed for several hours.
It has been a horror year on New Zealand roads, with the road toll yesterday standing at 318 - well up on 272 at the same time last year.
Meanwhile, another crash on the Kapiti Coast left one person in critical condition.
The single vehicle crash on SH1 in Te Horo happened around 10.10pm yesterday.
A child was also injured after a collision between a car and school bus in Queenstown yesterday afternoon.
A police spokesperson said they were called to the crash on Frankton Rd between Sugar Lane and Yewlett Cres at 3.49pm.
A St John spokesperson said two patients were transported to Lakes District Hospital. One patient was a 8-year-old girl with minor injuries, and another patient sustained serious injuries.