The Australian National Road Safety Strategy is making progress – but we need to do better. And while heavy vehicles are involved in less accidents – according to June 2022 figures – we still need to do more – because the number of vulnerable road users killed is on the rise. No one wants to lose a loved one in a road accident that could have been avoided.
A decade ago, around 1,200 people were killed each year on Australia’s roads and about 40,000 seriously injured. The Strategy aims to halve the number of people killed or seriously injured on Australian roads by 2030 and by 2050 the goal is an ambitious zero deaths.
It seeks to do this by targeting improvements in 3 key areas: Safe Roads, Safe Vehicles, and Safe Road Use. Speed management is embedded within all three. These improvements are mapped to 9 priority areas (10 counting speed).
SGESCO-MAX actively delivers solutions in four key areas:
The Bureau of Infrastructure and Transport Research Economics (BITRE), publishes, monthly quarterly and annual reports on road accidents in Australia to inform Australian Government policy development and wider community understanding.
As you can see in Table 3.1, the long-term trend is creeping towards the Strategy’s goals.
Cars off the Road during Covid was a positive
In the following June 2022 table, you can see the impact of COVID 19 lockdowns and less vehicles on the road leading to a positive downturn for that two-year period.
Heavy rigid trucks were involved in 1/3rd less accidents in 2020 and 2021. However, 2022 saw an upturn to the highest number in the ten-year period, while articulated truck-related death rates have fallen markedly in the past decade.
Still, over the last 12 months heavy vehicles were involved in 17% ( 203 of 1179) of deaths, according to figures to the end of June 2022. (187 + 16 = 203).
1 in 4 Fatalities is a Vulnerable Road User
The most recent figures that are available on death of road user type caused by heavy vehicles (Table 1.3, 2020) show that
- Light vehicle occupants account for approximately 56% of the total fatalities involving heavy trucks (100 out of 177)
- Heavy truck occupants account for 18% (31 out of 177)
- And Vulnerable Road users account for 26% (45 out of 177)
VRUs Need Protecting
Outcomes for Bicycle riders and Motorcyclists appear to be getting worse, highlighting that more needs to be done to protect vulnerable road users.
Enter MAX-SAFE Solutions
This is why SGESCO-MAX has a range of solutions designed for this purpose, removing blind spots and in some situations being able to actively take control of a heavy vehicle to brake it to avoid a collision.
Since 2020, there has been a surge in bicycle riders on our roads as people opted for this form of exercise during Covid – and it avoided the need to use public transport where people would come into contact with others.
Are you doing all you can with your heavy vehicle fleet to protect your occupants and vulnerable road users?
Here’s a copy of the National Road Safety Strategy and here’s the latest BITRE Quarterly report and annual report.
