Between 2000 and 2009, there were 21 fatal crashes, involving 25 fatalities, Mrs Robinson said.
She was unsure whether the drivers involved in these alcohol-related fatal crashes had excess breath-alcohol or not.
Mrs Robinson told a Cromwell Community Board meeting earlier this week when the causes of all crashes - not just those that resulted in fatalities - were looked at, alcohol was the cause of just 6% of them.
From 2007 to 2009 there were 442 reported crashes on Central Otago roads, which resulted in 11 deaths, 39 serious injuries and 154 minor injuries.
Almost 60% of the crashes were caused by drivers being distracted or a lack of driving skills, she said.
The biggest distraction was reaching for a water bottle.
Others included reaching for food or cellphones, and changing music.
Most accidents that were the result of inadequate driving skills occurred at intersections, usually because people failed to give way or because drivers did not indicate, Mrs Robinson said.
Other areas where a lack of driving skill was to blame for crashes involved drivers following too closely or because they were not used to the road conditions, such as the presence of ice.
Excessive speed caused 15% of crashes in the district, she said.
There had been a 10% increase in speed offences in rural Otago, which encompasses Central Otago, Waitaki and Queenstown Lakes districts, from 2008, although overall, that number had followed a downward trend since 2002.
It was not known how many of those offences occurred in Central Otago, but the perception young people were always at fault was wrong, as 44% of speeding offences were committed by drivers aged 31 to 50, she said.
Central Otago District Council roading manager Julie Muir said in 2009 54% of the drivers at fault in crashes in the district were Central Otago residents, 34% were from other parts of the country and 14% were from overseas.
"The overseas driver crashes are disproportionately high compared to other parts of New Zealand, and as a percentage of total drivers on our roads, which is why overseas drivers are often reported as being an issue within the Central Otago area," Ms Muir said.
"The fact remains, however, that crashes are more likely to be caused by local residents and other New Zealanders than by overseas drivers."
More than two-thirds of drivers at fault were men, while about half of all injuries caused in crashes in the district were to a person other than the driver at fault.
In 2008, 88% of crashes in Central Otago involved a single vehicle, Ms Muir said.
"During analysis of crash reports we have identified that there are a large number of single-vehicle crashes which involve a similar crash profile.
In many of these the driver drifts left and the driver loses control, when they either run off the seal or over-correct and lose control.
"Analysis of these loss-of-control crashes are usually preceded by a moment's distraction or inattention, or speed inappropriate to the weather conditions."
Recidivist offenders
• There are 123 recidivist drink-drivers with three or more convictions for drink-driving offences living in Central Otago.
• Alexandra has 66, Cromwell 39, Roxburgh 15 and Ranfurly 3.
• Central Otago community road safety adviser Jo Robinson said the highest breath-alcohol level recorded in the district this year, more than 1000mcg, was by a Cromwell man at 11am on a weekday.
• Alcohol-related driving offences grew in Central Otago from 382 in 2008 to 455 in 2009, with the biggest increase in the 20-29 age group.
