Australia Introduces Multiple Accident Reduction Schemes To Keep Drivers Safe
Australia is moving harder and faster than most Western counties to reduce accidents on the road. It is moving in the direction of zero tolerance, viewing accidents as unacceptable and finding ways to abate them.
The last decade has seen a slew of policies to that end. Australia wants its highways to be accident-free zones, and is using public policy to achieve that.
The National Road Safety Strategy 2021-2030
The National Road Safety Strategy is Australia’s flagship program to reduce risks on the road, following from examples in Western Europe. It is part of Vision Zero for 2050, which involves reducing deaths and injuries to zero by that year.
Currently, 40,000 people experience serious injuries on Australia’s roads every year, and 1,200 people die. Australia wants to cut this figure further using a mixture of traffic initiatives, vehicle technologies, and safety policies.
According to https://www.fittlaw.com.au/car-accident-lawyers-melbourne/, a law website, the damage to people’s lives is substantial. Many can’t go back to work after getting injured, preventing them from earning money and living the lives that they want.
Kidsafe Victoria
Kidsafe Victoria is another prominent road-safety organization operating in the country, with a site you can visit at https://www.kidsafevic.com.au/. It focuses on preventing the unintentional injury or death of children on Australia’s roads because of the lifelong damage and suffering road accidents can cause.
Most of its work involves educating parents and children about the value of child safety restraints in vehicles, and the high hospitalization rates. It points out that simple changes can make a tremendous difference in injury risk.
Australian Road Safety Foundation (ARSF)
The Australian Road Safety Foundation is another organisation that’s highly active in Australia, aiming to reduce the toll the public highways take on people’s lives. It’s involved in education and advocacy, encouraging people to take personal responsibility for their actions on the road.
Its main goal is to reduce “road trauma” of all types. It currently works with large car companies and auto makers to ensure that people can feel and be safe while driving their vehicles in the country.
Victoria Injury Prevention Program
To add to this already substantial list, there is the Victoria Injury Prevention Program. This works in Victoria on transportation-related hazards that the authorities sometimes miss, plugging the gaps. It wants to cut down on the province’s 400,000+ annual hospitalisations due to accidents on the road.
National Injury Insurance Scheme (NIIS)
For now, Australia doesn’t believe all accidents are preventable. That’s why it runs the National Injury Insurance Scheme (NIIS). This operates in various states and offers a no-fault scheme for catastrophic vehicle injuries. It’s been running for nearly 10 years, and offers lifetime care.
Ultimately, Australia is adopting multiple strategies to reduce risks on the road and take better care of the population. Its Vision Zero by 2050 is ambitious, but may become possible as AI technology improves and the country gets even better at reducing the risks of injury.
