Mornington Peninsula tackling road trauma through new campaign

Published date: 25 May 2021

Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula Shire has teamed up with the Transport Accident Commission for a localised campaign aimed at curbing road trauma in the region.

In the past five calendar years, 37 people have been killed on Mornington Peninsula Shire roads, while there have been another four deaths in 2021.

Mornington Peninsula is the second local government area to pilot the new TAC initiative, ‘Drive Safely Because’, which highlights localised reasons to drive safely and aims to create a safer community.

The TAC has worked with the shire to identify road safety priorities, particularly around protecting vulnerable road users such as children, pedestrians and cyclists.

The community-driven campaign will aim to reduce road trauma through events, promotions and visual reminders throughout the region of how important road safety is to local communities.

Minister for Roads and Road Safety, Ben Carroll, said keeping local roads safe was everyone’s responsibility and the campaign encouraged people to take ownership of road safety in their own backyard.

“By partnering with local government and directly targeting their priority areas, we hope this initiative will help make an immediate impact on the way people use roads,” Minister Carroll said.

TAC Head of Road Safety, Samantha Cockfield, said appealing to community mindedness through customised local messaging was an impactful way to improve road safety.

“The grassroots campaign aims to humanise road safety, and remind people that the foremost reasons to slow down and drive safely are the families and friends that we share our local roads with.”

Mornington Peninsula Shire Mayor, Councillor Despi O’Connor, said it was every driver’s responsibility to drive safe.

“We hope our localised campaign will make people think twice before driving irresponsibly on our roads,” Cr O’Connor said.

“Our families and friends use these roads and we want them to arrive home safe every day.”

The highly visible campaign will be driven by co-branded and customised marketing, on-street signage and activations via more than 200 businesses and community platforms, including local farmers’ markets, festivals, sports clubs, schools and engagement across dozens of local businesses.

Over the next six weeks, people on the Mornington Peninsula will see unique blue and white signage in priority areas highlighting reasons to drive safely, like the message ‘because we need to protect our wildlife'.

‘Drive Safely Because’ is also being piloted in the Surf Coast Shire, with insights and data from both campaigns to help inform future road safety partnerships with other Victorian LGAs.

Mornington Peninsula Shire Mayor, Councillor Despi O’Connor (left), and Councillor Paul Mercurio

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Pictured (L - R): TAC Road Safety Research Manager Paulette Ziekemijjer, Councillor Paul Mercurio, local business owner Lisa Trenery (Miss Moose), and Councillor Despi O’Connor.

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