Road safety boost to curb the number of lives lost

01 Sep 2016

The Andrews Labor Government has announced immediate new road safety measures in response to Victoria’s worst start to the year for road fatalities since 2008.

Minister for Roads and Road Safety Luke Donnellan and Police Minister Lisa Neville today announced a funding boost that would see additional police deployed for road safety enforcement.

A meeting of the Labor Government’s Ministerial Council for Road Safety yesterday approved 1000 additional police shifts over the next four months, with the resources being used to target high-risk driving behaviours.

Mr Donnellan said the Transport Accident Commission would provide funding for the extra shifts under a new $12 million Enhanced Enforcement Program over the next three years.

“Our road safety agencies have been working with us around the clock to find ways to stop 2016 becoming our worst year on the roads in nearly a decade,” Mr DonNellan said.

“We know that enforcement and public education are the two areas where we can have an immediate impact on the way people use our roads,” Mr Donnellan said.

The Ministerial Council for Road Safety agreed to fast track money from the program, enabling Police Command to offer extra shifts to members on their days off between now and Christmas to keep Victorians safe on the roads without diverting resources from other areas of policing.

Ms Neville said Victorians could expect to see more marked police cars patrolling the state’s roads and highways, targeting speed and drink driving, especially on rural roads, where the majority of the deaths have occurred.

“Victorians can expect the most visible police presence in the lead up to Christmas in the state’s history, with more speed enforcement, more random breath tests and more members on the roads working to keep every road user safe,” Ms Neville said.

Speed accounts for about a third of all road fatalities and about one-in-five drivers killed have an illegal blood alcohol content.

The enhanced police presence will be backed by TAC public education and community engagement activities, reminding Victorians that police will be out in large numbers to protect them on the roads.

Mr Donnellan said everyone had an important role to play if we want a future where no person dies or is seriously injured on our roads.

“The significant investments we’re making in these areas will make Victorians think twice before putting their own lives or the lives of others at risks on our roads,” Mr Donnellan said.

The Labor Government this year announced an unprecedented $1.1 billion package of initiatives to reduce lives lost on Victorian roads to below 200 by 2020.

Picture from left to right: TAC CEO Joe Calafiore, Minister for Roads and Roads Safety Luke Donnellan, VicRoads CEO John Merritt, Minister for Police Lisa Neville, Assistant Commissioner Road Policing Doug Fryer

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