January 15, 2016
Half of all road deaths in Australia occur in remote and rural Australia, according to statistics released this week.
The 2015 national road toll for 2015 was 1209 people.
“Half of all road deaths occur in remote and rural areas despite two-thirds of Australians living in cities,” Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia CEO Martin Laverty said.
“Zero deaths can only be achieved if resources are directed to safety improvements in remote and rural Australia, where a disproportionate number of road accidents occur.”
Road deaths have been declining over time.
A decade ago there were 1636 deaths on Australian roads – 26 per cent more than 2015.
However, the RFDS said there was still a disparity between city and bush.
Remote Australians are two and a half times more likely to be hospitalised following a motor accident than city residents.
“Public transport use, road safety advertising campaigns, and high visibility policing are effective in cities, but are less effective or not possible across all remote and rural areas,” Mr Laverty said.
He cited the International Road Traffic and Accident Database as evidence that Australia can further cut road deaths.
“The United Kingdom has half the road deaths per head of population than Australia. Matching the UK would be a good milestone on the road to zero deaths,” Mr Laverty said.
Mr Laverty called for:
- Safer roads, through continued upgrade of dangerous roads and highways;
- Safer drivers, through seat belt, alcohol, drug, speeding, and fatigue management;
- Safer vehicles, through uptake of new safety technology in motor vehicles.
“Support for first responders is also key. Police, ambulance, and community volunteers need sufficient resources for their essential first to scene service,” Mr Laverty said.
“The Royal Flying Doctor Service also depends on community support. One in every five people the Flying Doctor provides medical care to in the air is suffering an injury.
“It is only with strong financial support from government and generous charitable donations from communities that the Flying Doctor is able to be on call 24 hours a day to respond.”
