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RAA welcomes a Federal Government decision that will require states to release vital road trauma data to receive federal road funding – a move which will help save lives on our roads.
The Albanese Government announced it will enshrine new data reporting requirements in the next five-year road funding deal with Australia’s states and territories.
RAA is encouraging the South Australian Government to follow the Queensland Government’s lead and commit to data transparency to help save lives and secure Federal Government road funding.
According to crash data released by RAA last week, South Australia is not currently on track to reach the targets in the state’s road safety strategy, which targets a 50% reduction in lives lost and 30% reduction in serious injuries by 2031.
In the 12 months to the end of the March quarter, 99 people lost their lives and 807 serious injuries were suffered on SA roads (SA Police data) – 18% more than the 84 lives lost and 23% more than the 655 serious injuries that would see the state on track to meet its targets.
RAA Chief Executive Officer said the Federal Government’s new requirement was an important step in the right direction that state governments would have to follow if they want to secure vital road funding.
“This is a great step to help save lives on our roads,” Mr Reade said.
“Along with our federal counterpart in the AAA, we’ve been calling for more data transparency around the causes of crashes for years.
“Without comprehensive data that reveals the contributing factors for all serious and fatal crashes – we don’t have the full picture to understand what is really causing them.
“By making this type of data public, we will have the information needed to form more effective road safety strategies – and help save lives and reduce injuries on our roads.
“At RAA, our traffic engineers spend countless hours poring over the crash data that is currently available to understand crash causes and what could reduce their occurrence.
“The increased data will help us become more effective in identifying targeted actions.
“We look forward to the SA Government working with the Federal Government to deliver this outcome for all South Australian road users.”
The decision follows the Australian Automobile Association’s recent Data Saves Lives campaign, which garnered the support of 17 national medical and transport safety-focused groups and encouraged thousands of concerned Australians to ask their local MP to support crash data transparency.
The new road funding deal is set to come into effect from 1 July.