Youth and Road Trauma Forum

In Australia, as in many other countries, young drivers are significantly over-represented in road fatalities and serious injuries. In New South Wales drivers under 26 years hold 15% of licences but represent 25% of road fatalities [1]. Young males account for 79% of the drivers under 26 years of age involved in fatal crashes. A 17- year-old-driver (with a P1 licence) is four times more likely to be involved in a fatal crash than a driver aged 26 or older. Nearly half of all trauma admission to NSW Trauma Centres in 2006 with serious injuries were the result of road trauma and of these admissions, almost a third were aged 15 – 24 years [2]. At Westmead Hospital (one of the largest in Sydney), 23% of all Trauma Admissions in 2007 resulted from road trauma and 27% of these road trauma admissions were young people aged 15 – 25 years [3].

The Youth and Road Trauma Forum was developed to address these shocking statistics relating to young people and road crashes. The Forum’s primary objective is to reduce the road fatality and injury rates of young people via education and information that empowers them to make safer choices – as drivers and as passengers. The content of the Forum includes motoring information, driver safety, vehicle safety with information on first aid, trauma care, brain injury, drug and alcohol and the role of each of the Emergency Services. The forum?s content supports key messages in school?s Personal Development, Health and Physical Education (PDHPE) road safety curriculum as an attitude based driver education program, and is aimed to help young people assess their attitudes and behaviour on the road.