The man was travelling south along Perry Road when the car veered off the road and hit the tree about 7pm.

The man was trapped in the vehicle for 15 minutes while members of Keysborough and Springvale CFA and Springvale SES worked to free him.

He died in hospital last Monday morning.

There was one death on district roads in January 2009 and a total of eight for the year.

Senior Sergeant Ron Perrett of Greater Dandenong traffic management unit said a reduction of more than 37per cent in the number of serious injury collisions was achieved over the corresponding period in 2008.

This was one of the highest reductions of serious road trauma of any local government area in the state. It equates to approximately 70 less persons suffering serious injuries than in 2008.

"This was a tremendous result and means that 70 less families suffered the emotional impact having a loved one suffer the life-changing consequences of serious road trauma."

Senior Sergeant Perrett said the large reduction in serious road trauma could be "directly attributed to the ongoing efforts of local police and our local road safety partners in aggressively tackling unsafe road user behaviour through enforcement and education programs".