Australia’s Road Toll Rising: A Call for Urgent Action

Australia's road toll has seen an alarming increase in recent years, with fatalities now rising at a rate higher than before seatbelts were made mandatory. In 2024, over 1,300 people lost their lives on Australian roads, marking an increase from 1,258 in 2023. This is the worst result since 2012, and it reflects a concerning trend of rising road fatalities that has persisted over the past four years—something not seen since 1966.

A Grim Reality: The Rising Toll

The Australian Automobile Association (AAA) has reported that road deaths have surged by 18.5 percent since it released its Benchmarking the Progress of the National Road Safety Strategy (2021-30) report. These statistics paint a bleak picture, showing that no Australian jurisdiction is currently on track to meet its road safety targets. Worse still, many state and territory governments fail to collect the necessary data to assess their progress effectively.

AAA Managing Director Michael Bradley expressed grave concern over the data, urging governments to take immediate action. “It is clear current road safety approaches are inadequate, and more action is required to save lives,” Bradley said. He stressed the importance of using data to identify the factors contributing to the rising road toll, such as the condition of roads and the effectiveness of police traffic enforcement.

A Call for Smarter Road Investment

Bradley’s plea includes a strong push for adopting a globally recognised road-quality assessment system to guide smarter investment decisions. The system would help identify which roads need safety upgrades, allowing governments to focus on high-risk areas that require urgent attention. The AAA has long championed the use of the Australian Road Assessment Program (AusRAP), which uses a five-star safety rating system to assess road conditions across Australia.

As of 2024, over 450,000 kilometers of Australian roads have been assessed using AusRAP, which evaluates roads on a scale from one star (least safe) to five stars (safest). These assessments provide vital data to ensure that safety improvements are made where they’re needed most. However, until now, this data has largely remained hidden from the public eye.

Transparency and Accountability: The Key to Safer Roads

In a breakthrough for road safety in 2024, state and territory governments agreed to end years of secrecy surrounding road safety data. This includes publishing AusRAP data on the federal government’s National Road Safety Data Hub. Such transparency is seen as crucial for the public to understand how their tax dollars are being spent to improve road safety.

Bradley argues that this data should be embedded into the road funding allocation process. By doing so, governments can prioritise investment in the most dangerous roads, ensuring that public funds are spent efficiently and without political interference. "Australia’s rising road toll underscores the importance of using road condition data to direct road funding," he said, emphasizing that this approach could save lives.

A Five-Star Solution for Safer Roads

The AusRAP system is a powerful tool that can guide road safety efforts by pinpointing high-risk areas and recommending targeted safety upgrades. For example, roads rated one star are the most dangerous and in need of immediate improvement, while five-star roads are the safest and require less intervention. By focusing on the lower-rated roads, the government can make more strategic, impactful improvements.

With road deaths climbing year on year, it’s clear that Australia’s current approach to road safety is not working. The call for more data-driven decision-making is louder than ever, and governments must respond swiftly to reverse the trend. Lives are at stake, and smarter road investment could be the key to protecting Australians on the road.

Conclusion: The Need for Action

The recent rise in Australia’s road toll serves as a stark reminder that more must be done to address road safety. It’s not just about enforcing traffic laws or installing better infrastructure—it’s about using the data available to make informed, evidence-based decisions that can prevent fatalities and serious injuries.

As we move into the future, Australia’s road safety strategy must evolve. Implementing systems like AusRAP, increasing transparency in road funding, and making smarter, more targeted investments are steps in the right direction. Only through these efforts can we hope to reduce the rising toll and make Australia’s roads safer for all.

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Credit: GoAuto.com.au