The Australian Automobile Association (AAA) has released its latest “Benchmarking the Performance of the National Road Safety Strategy” (NRSS) report.
The report shows that in the 12 months to September 2017, 1,237 lives were lost on Australia’s roads. While this is a 2.7% decrease over the previous 12 months, it represents 100 more road deaths in the year ending September 2017 than would be required for the overall 2020 NRSS target to be achieved. The report also reveals that road crash fatalities are currently above the targets in all jurisdictions, except for Tasmania, Australian Capital Territory and Northern Territory, and above targets for all road user groups, except passengers.
“More than 100 Australians are killed in car crashes every month and the same number are seriously injured every day, so the significance of this problem cannot be over-stated,” said AAA Chief Executive Michael Bradley. “While the social cost of road deaths is both obvious and immeasurable, the economic implications of Australia’s road safety crisis are not. The AAA has welcomed the Federal Government’s inquiry into the National Road Safety Strategy and we will work with the Government to implement measures to reduce road fatalities.”
