May 19, 2026
Kingaroy State High School is this week hosting the annual RYDA – Rotary Youth Driver Awareness – program for South Burnett Year 11 students.
The workshops are organised by the Kingaroy Rotary Club in conjunction with local police and have been running in the South Burnett since 2010.
More than 4000 students have completed the program locally.
The content is put together by a national not-for-profit group, Road Safety Education Ltd, based on the latest road safety research and delivered by trained presenters.
About 150 students from Kingaroy State High School went through the course on Tuesday, with students from Nanango State High School, St Mary’s Catholic College and St John’s Lutheran School scheduled for Wednesday.
The students are divided into small groups and take turns attending a series of five workshops.
The “Speed & Stopping” workshop involved a braking distance demonstration by Senior Constable Jade Miller, from the Kingaroy Road Policing Unit, on a partially closed section of Avoca Street.
Students learnt how far it takes to stop when driving at different speeds, as well as the importance of maintaining a sufficient distance when following another vehicle.
Other topics included “Driver S.O.S.”, the “I In Drive”, “Crash Investigators” and “Mind Matters”.
The “I in Drive” workshop encouraged students to examine their own personalities and weaknesses, judging risk awareness, self-control and the ability to speak up.
The “Crash Investigators” workshop was held in the KPAC auditorium and led by RYDA guest speaker David Coulston, who became a paraplegic at the age of 21 after he was flung from his vehicle when it crashed and rolled at Camden Airport. He was not wearing a seatbelt.
This year, parents and carers could also join in the Road Safety Education program.
They were invited to attend a Driver Coach free workshop at KPAC on Tuesday night to gain information and advice about how to support teenagers who are learning to drive.
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Now some sobering statistics, courtesy of Road Safety Education:
- In 2025, more than 200 17-to-25 year-olds died on Australian roads, with hundreds and hundreds more injured.
- Road trauma remains one of the leading causes of death or hospitalisation of young Australians
- Drivers are at their highest risk of being involved in a crash during their first year of unsupervised driving – and this risk increases when peer-aged passengers are present.
- Factors contributing to higher crash rates among young drivers include inexperience and risky behaviours such as speeding, fatigue, distraction, not wearing seatbelts, and driving older vehicles with fewer safety features.
Related articles:
- Hey Parents! Help Your Young Drivers
- RYDA Drives Home Safety Message (2021)
- RYDA Makes Our Roads Safer (2019)
- RYDA Celebrates 10th Birthday
- Students Learn Some Real-Life Lessons (2018)
- Police Want Young Drivers To Stay Safe (2017)
- RYDA Drives Home The Risks (2016)
- Road Safety Becomes Real (2015)
- Students Get Hands On With Road Safety (2014)
- Safety Message Driven Home (2013)
- Important Lessons For Soon-To-Be Drivers (2012)
