New figures reveal Australia has just experienced its deadliest 12-month period on our roads in nearly 12 years, with a 10.2 per cent increase in the year to 31 July.
Australia’s peak motoring body says the nation faces a national road safety crisis that demands state governments agree to Federal calls for them to reveal what is going wrong by sharing more data on the causes of road trauma.
The latest Bureau of Infrastructure and Transport Research Economics (BITRE) figures show 1,327 people died on Australian roads in the year to 31 July – up from 1,204 in the previous corresponding period. This is the deadliest 12-month period on Australian roads since 30 October 2012, when there were also 1,327 fatalities.
The figures reveal significant increases in NSW (deaths up 17.1%), Victoria (9.3%), Queensland (3.2%) and Western Australia (2.9%). The Northern Territory saw a staggering 173.9% surge in road deaths over the period.
Only South Australia, Tasmania and the ACT had declines in road deaths.
*The notional target for the 12 months to 31 July 2024 if the NRSS was on a smooth trajectory towards its 2030 target.
Source: Bureau of Infrastructure and Transport Research Economics statistics.
BITRE produces road toll figures every month. It has been 40 months since it reported a decline in road deaths relative to the preceding 12-month periods.
AAA Managing Director Michael Bradley said the figures showed Australia’s ³Ô¹ÏÍøÕ¾ Road Safety Strategy 2021-30, which aimed to halve road deaths by 2030, was failing to achieve its objectives.
“Since 2021 – the strategy’s first year – road deaths have increased by 17.4 per cent,” Mr Bradley said.
“We are losing 110 lives each month and heading in the wrong direction at alarming speed.
“These latest figures are not some kind of one-off. They represent an unacceptable trend. We need state and territory governments to release more data about crash causes, road conditions and policing so we can understand the causes and adjust policy settings.”
Earlier this year, the Federal Government agreed to insert data transparency clauses into its next five-year road funding agreement with the states. Although this agreement was due to begin in July, negotiations have yet to reach a conclusion.
“All states and territories must get on board with an evidence-based approach to road safety,” Mr Bradley said.
“Data sharing will reveal which state’s road safety measures are the most effective, and the safety interventions that are most needed.
“That will not only save lives, but also clip the wings of pork barrelling politicians by revealing whether governments are funding roads to save lives or win votes in marginal electorates.
“The Queensland Government has publicly agreed to provide road safety data, but other states have not fully committed to complete data transparency.”
Last October the AAA launched its Data Saves Lives road safety data transparency campaign, backed by the nation’s motoring clubs, and 18 national organisations representing motorists, motorcyclists, truckers, pedestrians, doctors, insurers, road engineers and safety advocates.
The campaign touched a raw public nerve, with thousands of Australians contacting their local federal MP to call for reform.
