Road safety in Australia: approaches and outcomes

1
Road safety in Australia approaches and
outcomes Joe Motha Australia
2
Road safety in Australia background

• Three levels of government
• Australian Government
• 8 state/territory governments
• more than 600 local governments
• State/territory governments have the main
  responsibility for many road safety activities
• Road safety policy is coordinated at a national
  level
• the Australian Government does not control what
  the states do, but it can influence decisions

3
Australia background

• Big country, low population density
• less money per kilometre of road than most
  high-income economies
• High rate of vehicle ownership and usage (2
  vehicles for every 3 people)
• Motorcycles only 0.7 of vehicle kilometres
  (but 15 of road deaths)
• Road transport growth is slower than in rapidly
  developing countries

4
Early introduction of major behavioural measures

• Motorcycle helmets compulsory since 1960
  (Victoria)
• Seat belts compulsory since early 1970s
• Random breath testing for alcohol since 1976-1988
• .05 BAC alcohol limit since 1976-1992
• Mobile speed cameras since 1988-1997
• Compulsory bicycle helmets since 1990-1992
• (Dates vary by state/territory)

5
Public support for tough laws to improve road
safety

• 98 support for Random Breath Testing (alcohol)
• gt 95 seat belt use (front seats)
• very few motorcyclists without helmets
• surveys show increasing support for strict speed
  management

6
Progress the long-term view

• For the last 36 years, Australias road death
  rate has been going down
• in 1970 30.4 deaths per 100,000 people
• in 2006 7.8 deaths per 100,000 people
• Population road death rate below OECD median
  (since about 1990)

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Road deaths per 100 000 population, OECD median
and Australia 1975 to 2005
8
Road deaths per 100 000 population, OECD nations
and Australia, 2005
9
National strategy

• First National Road Safety Strategy 1992 2000
• Principles
• Coordination, cooperation and consultation
  between different government agencies, private
  sector, community
• Research-based approach focus on cost-effective
  measures
• Harmonise approaches, but leave opportunities for
  experimentation and innovation
• Comprehensive approach safer vehicles, safer
  roads, safer road user behaviour, better
  emergency treatment rehabilitation

10
National Road Safety Strategy 2001-2010

• Joint strategy involving all levels of government
  and other stakeholders
• Approved by Federal and State Transport Ministers
  in late 2000
• Series of two-year action plans, providing a
  focus on priority issues

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National Road Safety Strategy 2001-2010

• Target
• 40 reduction in the number of road deaths per
  100,000 population by end 2010 (to 5.6 max)

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Basis of target

• Based on estimates of the effects of known
  measures
• evidence
• analysis
• expert judgement
• Focus on measures likely to be possible to
  implement and cost-effective
• 40 was seen as challenging, but possible

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Action Plan priorities

• Two very important areas
• Speed management
• fewer people driving above speed limits
• lower limits on roads with high crash rates
• Engineering measures to improve the safety of
  roads
• Fix high-risk black spots
• Mass application of cost-effective measures to
  improve the safety of larger parts of the road
  network
• Major road upgrades

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Action Plans

• Other important action areas
• Impaired driving
• Alcohol
• Drugs
• Fatigue
• Vehicle safety
• Includes encouraging vehicle buyers (companies
  and individuals) to select safer vehicles
• Licensing and driver management

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Action Plans

• Safe Systems framework
• getting the right combination of
• safety of roads and roadsides
• speed management
• vehicle design
• safe road user behaviour

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Enforcement and penalties
Education and information
Licensing
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Enforcement and penalties
Deaths and injuries
Education and information
Mistakes
Licensing
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SAFE SYSTEM
Enforcement and penalties
Safer roads and roadsides
Alert, sober road users who obey the rules
Safer travel
Education and information
People survive mistakes
Licensing
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Safe Systems
People make mistakes
System must allow for this
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Special groups

• Action Plan includes some group-specific actions
  for special groups
• but notes that
• general measures are often very important for
  specific groups and issues

21
Special groups and general measures
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Is Australia on target?
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Measuring progress

• Steady progress toward the target would require a
  5 reduction in the fatality rate each year
• On that basis, the cumulative reduction by the
  end of May 2007 should have been 27.9

24
Measuring progress
25
Exposure factors

• Unexpected increase in motorcycle usage and
  motorcycle deaths
• motorcycle deaths have increased by 36 since
  1999(22 since 2004)
• the trend in motorcycle deaths accounts for about
  two-fifths of the current gap between the total
  fatality rate and the pro-rata target
• Total vehicle use increasing slightly faster than
  we had predicted

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Other possible problems

• Learning effects reducing effectiveness of
  enforcement?
• people learning when and where enforcement is
  likely (or unlikely)
• learning that they can offend without being
  caught
• Increasing mobile phone use?
• Underlying social factors (eg hurry sickness)?

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Was the target unrealistic?

• Two states have achieved reductions that are very
  close to the national pro-rata target for May
  2007
• National pro-rata target 27.9 reduction to May
  2007
• NSW reduction 27.2
• SA reduction 27.3
• In Victoria, which started with the lowest rate
  among the states, the rate has dropped by 24
  since December 2000

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Was the target unrealistic?

• In the 12 months to May 2007, two states (NSW and
  Victoria) had road death rates slightly below the
  national pro-rata target rate
• National pro-rata target 6.7 deaths per 100,000
  
• NSW and Victoria 6.6 deaths per 100,000
• Victoria recorded a 31 reduction in the fatality
  rate in the two years to April 2004, mainly by
  using an unusually strict approach to speed
  enforcement

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Victorias campaign on speeding results
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Why are we above the national target?

• National Road Safety Action Plan for 2007 2008
  notes that many cost-effective measures
• have not been implemented
• or
• have not been implemented in all jurisdictions
• or
• have not been implemented on a sufficient scale
• The target was an estimate of what could be
  achieved, not a forecast of what would be
  achieved

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Further information

• ATSB Road safety pages
• http//www.atsb.gov.au/road/safety.aspx
• National Strategy and Action Plans
• http//www.atcouncil.gov.au/documents/atcnrss.aspx
  
• Road Safety in Australia
• - short overview
• www.atsb.gov.au/publications/2006/Road_safety_in_A
  ust.aspx
• - book
• www.atsb.gov.au/publications/2006/pdf/Road_s
  afety_in_Aust.pdf (1943 Kb)