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With tragic crash data showing 211 young people have died on SA roads in the past 10 years, RAA is ramping up its road safety education programs to reach more students than ever before.
As National Road Safety Week continues, RAA has analysed SA Police data showing 211 young people (0-24 years old) have lost their lives on our roads between 2014-2023 – and 60 of those were children under the age of 18.
The alarming numbers have prompted RAA to dial up its road safety education programs it delivers with support from the State Government.
The state’s peak motoring body is set to provide road safety education to a record 43,000 South Australian children at more than 350 schools this year across its Street Smart Pre School, Primary School and High School programs.
That’s an increase of more than 4,000 students on last year.
RAA General Manager Community & Corporate Affairs Emily Perry said the number of young lives lost was tragic and RAA would continue to expand its programs to help educate more young people about road safety.
“Young people are some of our most vulnerable road users,” Ms Perry said.
“Tragically, our young, less experienced road users continue to be overrepresented in serious crashes, which is why road safety education from an early age is so important.
“As soon as our kids start heading to childcare or pre school they begin to regularly interact with our roads and with traffic, and it’s crucial that they know how to stay safe when doing so.
“That’s why we partner with the State Government to deliver vital lessons to students of all ages – and we continue to increase the number of kids we reach each year.
“Our range of lessons are tailored to each individual age group – so primary schoolers learn all about crossing the road with an adult and getting in and out of the back of the car safely, while high schoolers are taught about the potential consequences of taking risks behind the wheel.
“We hope reaching SA kids with this message at various stages of their development will help them to make better road safety decisions and – ultimately – save young lives on our roads.”
The record number of students participating in RAA’s road safety education programs is due in part to a third day being added to its Street Smart High event at the Entertainment Centre, which is set to be attended by around 12,500 students from almost 100 secondary schools in September.
As part of its pre and primary school programs, RAA will also run more than 300 school visits to deliver tailored road safety lessons – at no charge to parents or their schools.
RAA’s Street Smart Primary program is supported by the Department for Infrastructure and Transport’s THINK! Road Safety Partnerships Program and the Lifetime Support Authority. RAA’s Street Smart High event is supported by the Department for Infrastructure and Transport’s THINK! Road Safety Partnerships Program.
For more on RAA’s education programs visit our website.