The Australasian College of Road Safety (‘ACRS’) have provided feedback to the Office of Road Safety on the Draft National Road Safety Strategy 2021-30 (Consultation Draft – February 2021) (‘NRSS’).
ACRS recognises the difficulties that arise when developing such a document and in particular securing common positions notwithstanding the vast array of interested parties. While concerns have been expressed among the ACRS membership that the NRSS has some significant weaknesses, it is important that the process of review and development continues.
The submission reaffirms our commitment to the 6 key elements previously identified in May 2020 in our letter to the Deputy Prime Minister:
- Ministers’ 2050 vision for the elimination of fatalities on the road extended to serious injuries
- 2030 targets to reduce fatal and serious injuries by 50% (both raw numbers and as a population rate), backed by related performance and delivery targets
- Publication in easily consumable form, for the public, of infrastructure safety star ratings for all road users
- Safety investment plans and budgets to achieve targeted improvements in safety star ratings
- National Regulatory Impact Statement for lowering the speed limits for urban roads and for rural roads
- Keep pace with European vehicle safety regulation that encourages evidence-based driver assistive technologies, especially intelligent speed assist and autonomous emergency braking.
The submission was drafted in the interest of creating a NRSS which clearly sets out how road trauma will be reduced over the next decade and beyond. We hope that the final NRSS will provide a strong platform that we can promote and use to drive our own activity and achieve our common goals of eliminating serious road trauma.
Find the 2021 ACRS Submission to the Review of the 2021-2030 Draft National Road Safety Strategy here.