Proposed amendments to the Australian Design Rules pertaining to mandation of event data recorders in Australian soldvehicles

In 2016, 1295 lives were lost and 32,300 injuries suffered on Australian roads, an annual cost of $33 billion. (Litchfield, 2017) Collisions are analysed by experts to determine causation including driver behaviour, speed, vehicle safety and road design. Criminal prosecutions and coronial investigations rely on collision expert findings. Collision investigation includes analysis of Event Data Recorders (EDR). EDR’s have capability of recording pre-crash data including speed, braking and acceleration, Currently, no Australian legislation exists mandating that vehicles be fitted with EDR or that stored data be accessible. Such legislation would enhance collision causation analysis, increasing road safety and reducing road trauma.