It has led the RACV to call for state and federal governments to commit cash for new work to help cut the number of crashes.

The Australian Road Assessment Program report reveals the freeway needs improvements based on the number of crashes annually per kilometre of road.

The freeway between Woodend and the start of the Pyrenees Highway near Elphinstone was identified as one of the top five "most improved" highway sections in the state.

The section had 21 crashes between 2005-09, but is now rated "low-risk".

Improvements which have been made on the section include the duplication of the freeway at Kyneton north and the Malmsbury bypass which opened in 2008.

RACV public policy general manager Brian Negus said there was a need to investigate measures such as wire-rope safety barriers to prevent run-off-road and head-on collisions on the freeway between the Western Ring Road and Woodend.

Macedon Ranges Highway Patrol officer-in-charge Sergeant Geoff Neil said improvements could be made to the road surface, but stressed driver behaviour was mostly to blame for accidents.

"VicRoads have provided an excellent road to drive on. It's not the road that is the issue, it's the drivers using it.

"It's nice to have wire rope barriers and all sorts of things, but most of the collisions that we have are driver-based and caused by irresponsible behaviour."