[Peetwo]

4D in the hunt for a distraction??

Although road trauma and the national road toll are all disturbing and carry stories of major tragedy at a completely indiscriminate and personal level for many Australian families, other than Federal funding for roads or regulating for the national heavy vehicle industry (i.e. Trucking industry), safety risk mitigation is largely the responsibility of the State and Local governments.

Well no, not according to our immaculately groomed and manicured miniscule DDDD_MNFI who apparently seems to think it is within his power to shame the average Joe Public parent into buying their recently licensed 'love child' with the latest, greatest and safest in automobile transport...

Here was 4D's journalistic masterpiece in yesterday's Herald Sun:

Road safety is a national issue and quality of cars is crucial
[img=0x0]http://pixel.tcog.cp1.news.com.au/track/component/article/1cb000f614776c9e1dcb8bda991d0dce?esi=true&t_template=s3/chronicle-tg_tlc_storyheader/index&t_product=HeraldSun&td_device=desktop[/img]DARREN CHESTER, Sunday Herald Sun
January 10, 2016 12:00am
[img=0x0]http://pixel.tcog.cp1.news.com.au/track/component/article/1cb000f614776c9e1dcb8bda991d0dce?esi=true&t_template=s3/chronicle-tg_tlc_storymeta/index&t_product=HeraldSun&td_device=desktop[/img]
DOUBLING demerit points or increasing fines for drivers who break the law in an attempt to reduce the road toll is too simplistic and just lets governments off the hook.

It’s too easy for governments to blame drivers and launch advertising campaigns or police blitzes when the causes and public health impacts of road trauma have to also consider improving the safety of the road network and the quality of cars people drive.

It’s clear: safer drivers in safer cars on safer roads will save lives and reduce serious injuries.

It’s time for a focused national approach and practical action from all levels of government to reduce the toll. The National Road Strategy 2011-2020 made the point succinctly: over the past several decades, Australia has earned an international reputation as a model country in many areas of road safety intervention. But the overall performance in recent times has not kept pace with the achievements of other developed countries, and there is a need for a major shift in thinking.

Governments must stop thinking it’s about drivers and the community must stop accepting the inevitability of the road toll.

Road trauma costs Australia roughly $30 billion per year. But the social impact of about 1200 lost lives and countless injuries is huge. In Victoria alone, 257 people lost their lives in 2015 and road trauma will cost the economy $7 billion.

Everyone has been touched by the road toll; it is a national public health disaster. But we seem content for each state to have its own strategies on driver education, enforcement, advertising campaigns and road construction.

It is bizarre that we can’t even agree on the best graduated licensing system with individual states adopting individual approaches to training learners and even the age at which licences become available. States also have different methods for alcohol and drug testing, speed limits, use of speed cameras and the demerit point system. We should be able to bring together research and agree to harmonise our licensing and enforcement systems to optimise road safety across state borders.

But that doesn’t even touch two of the other key issues: improving the safety of the road network and getting drivers into safer cars.

Technology can help the driver avoid crashes or minimise the severity of injury in an accident. However, the average age of the Australian vehicle fleet of 10 years means it takes several years for the benefits of innovations to flow to the second-hand market.

The Federal Government could ban the importation of vehicles that don’t meet specified safety standards under the ANCAP star rating system to improve the quality of vehicles on our roads. But we will need incentives to get drivers into safer cars at a faster rate and increased enforcement of roadworthiness standards.

A safer car may turn a serious injury into a minor one and save the health budget billions, so why shouldn’t governments consider ways to subsidise the purchase of safer vehicles, particularly for young drivers? Young drivers face the highest risk of accident in their early years of driving but which usually coincides with them driving the worst car of their lives.
And that leaves us with the road and transport network itself.

Our aim must be to prevent road crashes and if they still occur, to minimise their consequences and extent of injury for all involved.

Duplication of major highways, installation of road safety barriers, widening road shoulders, better lighting, tactile line marking, improved signage and increasing the number of rest areas are all strategies being rolled out through various local, state and federal initiatives. But again, there is a lack of consistency across state borders and no national narrative.

Supporting rail freight upgrades to take some traffic off our roads, improving public transport links and providing dedicated cycling lanes also have a role to play.

It is the right time for a national debate about road trauma but we should demand more from all of our governments and focus on building a safe system, not just blaming drivers for the road toll.

DARREN CHESTER IS THE FEDERAL MEMBER FOR GIPPSLAND

And this was the subsequent media appearances that 4D has done since:

Transcript—3AW Melbourne Mornings
Subjects: 2016 Road trauma, Road safety
02 January
interview
Transcript—ABC Statewide
Subjects: 2016 Road trauma, Road safety
02 January
interview
Transcript—2UE Sydney Breakfast
Subjects: 2016 Road trauma, Road safety
02 January
interview
Transcript—ABC Statewide Drive - VIC
Subjects: 2016 Road trauma, Road safety
01 January
interview
Transcript—ABC 24
Subjects: Road safety, Infrastructure funding, January 1
01 January
interview

 
Ok 4D I'll admit that is an admirable cause but while your calling for a national debate on the issue could you also show a similar proactivity - instead of weasel words - to help halt the national decimation of a once proud and productive aviation industry - FDS...

Or perhaps 4D you should consider sending your CV to Premier Daniel Andrews, although I do believe he already has a Transport Minister...  
      
MTF...P2