accident

It may seem like fun but it is downright dangerous. The faster you travel the more likely
it is that you will be involved in a car crash, and the faster you go, the harder you hit.
The effects of speeding and being involved in a car crash can change your life forever.

Think about this:
Choose your speed and you
choose your consequences.
In a 60 km/h zone, travelling at:
• 65 km/h, you are twice as likely to
have a serious crash
• 70 km/h, you are four times as likely
to have a serious crash
• 75 km/h, you are 10 times as likely
to have a serious crash
• 80 km/h, you are 32 times as likely
to have a serious crash
than if you drive at 60 km/h.

In rural out of town areas, travelling just 10 km/h faster than the average speed of other traffic, you are twice as likely to have a serious crash. Travelling a bit slower than other traffic on the highway actually reduces the hances that you will have a serious crash.

Dry conditions:
The road is dry, you have a modern vehicle with good
brakes and tyres. A child runs onto the road 45 m ahead
of you while you are travelling in a 60 km/h zone.
You brake hard. Will you stop in time?
Wet conditions:
The road is wet, you have a modern vehicle with good
brakes and tyres. A child runs onto the road 45 m ahead
of you while you are travelling in a 60 km/h zone.
You brake hard. Will you stop in time?
• If you were driving just 5 km/h over the speed limit, you won’t
have time to stop and you will hit the child at over 30 km/h.

Wet conditions:
The road is wet, you have a modern vehicle with good
brakes and tyres. A child runs onto the road 45 m ahead
of you while you are travelling in a 60 km/h zone.
You brake hard. Will you stop in time?
• If you were driving just 5 km/h over the speed limit, you won’t
have time to stop and you will hit the child at over 30 km/h.
• In wet conditions, it is much safer to drive below the speed limit. If
a child steps onto the road 45 m ahead, you will have to be
driving under the speed limit to stop in time.

The faster you go, the less time
you have to see hazards,
assess the risk and respond.
Even though you may be a
capable driver, extra speed
always means it takes longer
for the vehicle to stop.
In wet conditions you should
allow much more distance to
stop than on a dry road.

The more distance you keep
from other vehicles on the
road, the better your chances
are of avoiding a crash.
All drivers make mistakes at
times. If you stay at least three
seconds behind the vehicle in
front, you will have time to
react to unexpected situations.
You will also be a lot more
visible to oncoming drivers and
better positioned to see any
vehicles ahead of the one in
front of you.

Do you feel the pressure
to go fast?
Don’t worry if others expect you
to go fast. You are in control of
the car and ultimately you are
the one to face the
consequences of speeding.
Can you afford the costs of
speeding (points and licence
loss, $$s and injury)?
Even if you don’t crash or get
fined, higher speeds and hard
acceleration will cost you extra
money every time you fill your
petrol tank.

Next time you see a person
speeding in and out of traffic,
check out where they are at the
next change of lights or
intersection. Chances are they
are beside you. Speeding can
really only save you a few
seconds or minutes in a total
journey – so it’s not worth the
risk.
Annoyed that someone has
pushed into the gap that you
have left between you and the
next car? Just make another
gap. It’s cheaper and less
hassle than crashing into their
car!

Speeding in an urban area is as dangerous as driving with an
illegal blood alcohol concentration. In a 60 km/h zone, even
travelling at 5 km/h above the limit increases your chances of
having a serious crash as much as driving with a blood alcohol
concentration of 0.05.

Motor vehicle crashes are the leading
cause of death among young
Australians aged 16–25 years.
Fact:
The risk of being involved
in a fatal or serious crash
is much higher for young
drivers when there are
passengers – particularly
when the passengers are
around the same age and
when there is more than
one.

Why is this so?
Having your friends in the car
can:
• Distract you when you have
not fully mastered or
automated your driving
skills.
• Encourage riskier driving
behaviours – such as
driving after drinking
alcohol, speeding, swerving,
and following too close.
• Tempt you to show off your
driving skills.

Here are some tips:
• It isn’t easy to tell your friends that you
won’t give them all a lift home from a
party – so practise some believable
excuses before the end of the night.
‘Mum only loaned the car to me on
condition that I come straight home.’
• Leave the car at home and share a taxi
with your friends.
• If you want to take a friend or friends,
keep the number to a minimum. The
more passengers you have, the riskier
the trip becomes.
• When offering friends a lift, remember
that you are the driver and in control of
the car. Take them on the condition that
they are helpful rather than distracting.
Ask them to: help out with directions;
not fiddle with knobs and dials; not to
point out things unrelated to the driving
task (e.g. good looking pedestrians!!).
• If your friend is driving, allow them to
concentrate on the driving – try to help
by spotting hazards in and around the
road.

During driving practice
• For the first 10 hours of supervised
practice, keep the radio off and
passengers either out of the car or
down to a minimum, and silent.
• As you become more confident and
capable as a learner driver, start
allowing passengers and other
distractions into the car. But be
assertive and ask for silence when
things get busy or difficult.
After you get your Ps
• Avoid taking passengers for the first
few unsupervised drives. You will be
surprised how much more challenging
driving is on your own than when your
supervisor was taking up some of the
workload.
• Be in control of every trip you make –
resist the temptation to show off your
driving skills to your friends or other
road users.

For the complete article please read here: ATSB