New 2024 road death toll figures show there has been an 11.7 per cent increase in road fatalities in Australia this year, with the Australian Automobile Association (AAA) calling on action to be taken to stop that number climbing higher.
1310 people died on Australian roads from July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024, which is the deadliest 12-month period on Australian roads in over a decade. The 12 months preceding November 30, 2012, also saw 1310 deaths.
That number is a dramatic increase on the 1173 deaths saw last year.
The June 2024 quarter’s road toll was 311, which is 9.9 per cent higher than the previous corresponding period’s 283 fatalities.
Only the ACT and Tasmania have seen a decline in road deaths over this past year. New South Wales, on the other hand, has seen a 23 per cent rise from 291 to 358.
AAA Managing Director Michael Bradley says the damning figures indicate a change is needed in Australia’s current approach to road trauma management.
“We need a data-driven response to a problem killing more than 100 people every month,” Bradley says.
“States and territories must report data they hold about the causes of crashes, the quality of roads, and the effectiveness of policing, so it can be used to produce more effective road safety interventions.
“To its credit, the Federal Government has agreed to insert data transparency clauses into the next five-year intergovernmental road funding agreement. This agreement was due to begin this month but has not yet been finalised, and the delay is impeding the introduction of more effective road safety measures.
“Data sharing will reveal which state’s road safety measures are the most effective, and the safety interventions that are most needed. That will not only save lives, but also end the politicisation of road funding by revealing whether governments are investing in the roads that most need safety upgrades, rather than investing in road projects in marginal electorates to win votes.
“The Queensland Government has publicly agreed to provide road safety data, but other states have been silent on this important reform proposal.”
The AAA launched its Data Saves Lives road safety data transparency campaign in October last year and has the backing of 18 national motoring organisations including truckie representatives.
The entire road toll benchmarking report can be viewed here.
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