Although Australia has long prioritised road safety at federal and state level, what types of initiatives and programs are on the cards for 2023?
Over the past decade, more than 12,000 people have died on Australia’s roads, with 1,127 of those fatalities happening in 2021 alone. Despite continued improvements in road construction, vehicle design, enforcement and medical response, the nation’s road safety performance has plateaued.
In fact, Australia has also failed to meet its National Road Safety Reduction Targets since 2015. What’s more is that it has been estimated that for every fatality, around thirty people are seriously injured on our roads. Now more than ever, road safety matters – but what are we doing about it?
At a federal level, the 2021-2030 National Road Safety Strategy outlines Australia’s road safety objectives over the next decade, including key priorities for action and targets to reduce the annual number of fatalities by at least 50% and serious injuries by at least 30% by 2030.
In addition, the strategy continues the commitment to the Safe System approach and strengthening all elements of our road transport system under three key themes: safe roads, safe vehicles and safe road use.
While these themes may sound obvious, implementing them is a whole other kettle of fish entirely but are principles that third party representatives, such as the Australian Road Safety Foundation, aim to embody in conjunction with the Federal Government.
During 2020, the Australian Road Safety Foundation (ARSF) worked closely with the Australian Government to create RoadSet – an innovative program designed to increase road safety awareness skills in young Australians and highlight strategies to help prevent crashes and reduce road trauma.
This cutting-edge ‘ed-tech’ program was launched as a pilot program, primarily aimed at Year 9 students. RoadSet features ten memorable and engaging modules, covering road safety issues relating to pedestrians, passengers, cyclists, skateboard and scooter riders and ultimately becoming a safe driver.
Ultimately, the modules in RoadSet aim to support the quality teaching and learning of road safety in school and community education programs with the program and its resources being provided free of charge thanks to the funding provided by the Australian Government.
Following the success of the pilot program, the ARSF is aiming to continue and expand the RoadSet program’s content and resource materials to reach all school year levels nationally and made submissions for the 2022-2023 Federal Budget to expand the pilot nationally.
Unfortunately, the 2022-2023 Federal Budget has little to no mention of any funding for road safety, but that doesn’t mean that we won’t see updates in the state figures. Thankfully, there are other ways to highlight the importance of road safety, such as key events like the 2023 Road & Traffic Expo.
Held at the International Convention Centre in Sydney on Wednesday 11 October and Thursday 12 October, the Expo has long been regarded as Australia’s biggest trade show for the entire roads and transport ecosystem. In fact, The Expo is where road authorities, local government and the industry’s largest private organisations meet to find new suppliers, partners and decision-makers involved in civil construction, traffic management, road maintenance, operations and asset management of roads, bridges and tunnels across Australia.
If there’s a group of industry professionals that are able to come together to improve road safety in the Land Down Under, it’s here. However, if you’re on the hunt for devices and methods to make your workplace or commercial car park safer for pedestrians and cars alike on a day-to-day basis, then the good news is that you don’t need to go all the way to Sydney to do so.
At Speed Humps Australia, we’ve spent ten years focusing on one thing: to provide one style of product, and to do it exceptionally well. We have worked tirelessly to develop specifications that do not fade or deteriorate, are easy to install, and are made from high-quality, recycled rubber for minimal environmental impact.
With just a handful of our clients around the nation including KFC, Westfield, Shell and the Queensland Government, our rumble bars, speed humps and wheel stops have been purposefully designed to meet Australian Standards and to truly go the distance.
As our design and production is all handled in house and supplied Australia wide, get in touch with us today to request a quote or discuss how we can help with providing a tailored solution to your unique project requirements.
For 10 years, our focus has been on one thing: to provide one style of product and to do it well.
Our wheel stops, speed humps and rumble bars meet Australian Standards, don’t fade, and we’ve never needed to replace one.
For 10 years, our focus has been on one thing: to provide one style of product and to do it well.
Our wheel stops, speed humps and rumble bars meet Australian Standards, don’t fade, and we’ve never needed to replace one.
