New road safety strategy unveiled by SA Government

A new 10-year road safety strategy has been unveiled by the South Australian Government, aiming to reduce the number of lives lost and serious injuries across the state’s roads.

South Australia’s Road Safety Strategy to 2031 sets an ambitious 10-year target to drastically reduce the number of lives lost on South Australian (SA) roads, from the current three-year average of 96 per year to fewer than 43 per year by 2031.

The Strategy also sets a target to reduce serious injuries on the state’s roads by more than 30 per cent by 2031, from 708 to fewer than 474.

The Strategy will be implemented through a three-year rolling action plan to be released in early 2022, which will be updated annually. It will set out the actions to be taken to give effect to the priorities, as well as responsibilities and timeframes for implementation.

The strategic focus areas of the Strategy include road user behaviour, vehicles, roads, regional and remote areas, workplaces, aboriginal road safety, older road users, walking, cycling and public transport and young drivers and riders with a focus on those living in regional or remote areas.

Road Safety Minister Vincent Tarzia said the ambitious targets are the first steps towards achieving zero lives lost on SA roads by 2050.

“Every life lost and serious injury on our roads is preventable. The residual effects of crashes are devastating for the families and loved ones of victims, and for those who support the seriously injured,” Tarzia said.

“This Strategy is an important journey we must take with every South Australian and especially those from the regions where most lives lost occur.”

Kym Inglis – whose wife and two young daughters lost their lives in a 2010 crash – said he supported the objectives of the new Strategy.

“The impact of severe trauma and loss of life lasts a lifetime,” Inglis said. “I want and need to have my tragic loss of life become something that has a positive impact on the community.”

To read the strategy, click here.