Two Hamilton residents died in West Lincoln Saturday morning, after a Dodge Ram pickup collided with a Freightliner on Regional Road 20. Less than eight hours later, the life of an 85-year-old Brampton man was claimed on the same road, after a collision between his Toyota Corolla and another transport truck. Neither of the transport truck drivers were injured.

Reports describing West Lincoln's Regional Road 20 as a "killer road" were dismissed by police Monday, after two separate crashes Saturday left three people dead, less than 30 kilometres apart.

The collisions happened in a span of eight hours, killing Hamilton residents John Thompson Sr., 57, and Lorraine Caughell, 51, as well as 85-year-old Brampton man David Cowman.

"This is a tragedy and we are obviously very concerned," said Niagara Regional Police Constable Jacquie Forgeron. "(But) roads aren't killers. They don't get up and bite you. They are roads, simply that."

"With regards to collisions... most can be related to driver error or human error."

The first crash occurred shortly after 6 a.m., near the intersection of Regional Road 20 and South Grimsby Road 8.

A pick-up truck veered off the road, over corrected and crossed the centre line into the path of an eastbound Freightliner, said police.

The red Dodge Ram pick-up was being driven west by a Hamilton woman.

The transport truck struck the passenger side of the pick-up, and ended up 50 metres off the road in a nearby field, north of Regional Road 20.

The transport truck driver was not injured.

The pick-up truck ended up on the south-side ditch of Regional Road 20, where both occupants were pronounced dead at the scene.

Later that day, just before 2 p.m. an eastbound Toyota Camry crossed the centre line on Regional Road 20 near Boyle Road, colliding directly with the left side of a westbound Freightliner, said police.

The Camry spun counterclockwise and came to rest in the eastbound lane, a short distance from impact.

The Freightliner's brake lines were damaged, but the driver was able to stop the truck after sliding sideways into a field on the north side of the road.

The Camry driver was pronounced dead at the scene. The truck driver was not injured.

The accidents occurred less than 30 kilometres apart.

"We have a very large area that we police, thousands and thousands of kilometres of roadways," said Const. Forgeron, in regards to the number of patrols on "We do our best to be in areas that are deemed to be worrisome, but it seems to me that collisions occur anywhere, whether rural or urban, and a good number actually occur in rural areas. It is very difficult to be everywhere at once, given the vast amount of rural areas."

Regional Road 20 is a two-lane road - formerly Highway 20 - that stretches from Hamilton to Niagara Falls.

The speed limit is 80 km/h.

It is often used as an alternative to the Queen Elizabeth Way.