New TAC data shows serious injury crashes on the rise

02 Sep 2016

New Transport Accident Commission data shows areas on Melbourne’s suburban fringe have some of the highest road crash injury rates in the state.

The TAC’s Road Safety Quarterly Statistics report was released on Tuesday, revealing a 6266 people were admitted to hospital following transport accidents in 2015, a 5 per cent increase on the previous year.

The injury data also shows that 969 people spent more than two weeks in hospital last year – an indicator of the severity of their injuries. This was a 10 per cent increase on the previous year.

Casey was identified as the area with the most people admitted to hospital after a crash (276), followed by Melbourne (231), Greater Dandenong (223) and Greater Geelong (203).

TAC chief executive officer Joe Calafiore said all Victorians had a role to play in addressing serious injuries on the roads.

“Many of those people injured on our roads will make a full recovery but for others it will be a lifetime spent dependent on others and unable to enjoy many of the things most of us take for granted,” Mr Calafiore said.

“We need every Victorian to think about the choices they can make – the cars they drive or the way they drive them – and make a commitment to ensuring every trip is as safe as it can be.”

The TAC released the new data on the same day Julie Metaxotos launched her new book A Fractured Life. Julie was severely injured in a 2013 Christmas Eve crash and the book details her journey to recovery. After nearly 50 operations and years of rehabilitation, Julie returned to work in May.

“Julie’s story is an inspirational one of strength and determination,” Mr Calafiore said.

“This is an experience that no person deserves to go through and should serve as a reminder to all Victorians as to why we need to do everything we can to keep each other safe on the roads.

The new injury data comes after the TAC last month announced its mission to become the world’s leading social insurer through its work in crash prevention and injury compensation and rehabilitation.

“We must put the highest value on human life and health and that means doing everything possible to prevent crashes and to help injured Victorians’ lives get their lives back on track”, Mr Calafiore said.

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