Two people are dead after a crash on State Highway One at Foxton in Manawatu-Wanganui region, today.
Police confirmed in a statement this evening that a second person has died, after confirming the first fatality earlier this afternoon.
The news comes as crashes over the weekend took the annual road toll above 330 - roughly the same number as this time last year, which went on to be the worst since 2009.
One crash near Invercargill that claimed two lives involved three motorbikes.
Police Minister Stuart Nash today said there was no silver bullet for road safety but if more regulation was required then it could be looked at.
Both Mr Nash and the Police Association president Chris Cahill said the road toll was nearing crisis point and in the case of motorcycle deaths the anecdotal evidence suggested it was middle-aged men who did not have the experience to handle large motorbikes who were involved in most accidents.
"Dare I say it, it's a lot of men going through a sort of mid-life crisis ... they go out there and buy a big powerful bike and they just haven't got the skills and experience to handle it when they get into trouble and they kill themselves," Mr Nash said.
"Whether there needs to be something in place where if you buy a motorcycle over a certain CC rating then you have to pass a certain sort of test or you've got to be able to prove you can handle it in difficult sorts of situations.
"We need to be looking to do something different because too many people are dying on our roads."
Mr Nash said at some point people had to take personal responsibility for the country's horrific road toll.
SHARE ME