The ADTA attended the Australian College of Road Safety Conference in Melbourne in September and obtained some interesting information.
For instance……
- Australia is now outside the top ten OECD countries for road fatalities. The safest countries are Sweden, The Netherlands and The United Kingdom.
- By 2020 road deaths will be the third most common cause of death
- 10% of drivers are involved in 50% of crashes
- Fatigue contributes to 20% of crashes
- 90% of crashes are due to the behaviour / performance of the driver as opposed to driving conditions, vehicle malfunction or road structures.
- A teenage driver travelling with a teenage passenger is 50% more likely to be involved in a crash.
- Ten years ago there was only 5 one star ANCAP rated cars available. Now three quarters of new cars have 4 or 5 stars.
- A 2 star car has double the accident / injury risk of a 5 star car.
- Probationary drivers would be 80% safer if they drove 5 star cars, which would equate to 15% less road fatalities.
- Wire rope barriers and bitumen on the side of roads with ripple strips lead to a 60%-90% decrease in serious injuries and fatalities.
- Sweden has a default speed limit of 70kmph, compared with ours which is 100kmph
- {Information provided by Australian Driver Trainers Association {Vic} Inc.
