Is it possible to eliminate road trauma?
Imagine a Tasmania where no-one was killed or suffered long-term injury from road crashes. Hundreds of people would live better, longer and happier lives. A new Churchill Fellowship report looks at global road safety best practice with the hope of making that a reality.
RACT member Craig Hoey was awarded a Churchill Fellowship for travel to Sweden, Norway, Denmark and the Netherlands to investigate the efforts of these countries to eliminate road trauma.
A Churchill Fellowship offers Australian citizens and permanent residents a lifechanging opportunity to travel overseas for up to eight weeks to learn more about a topic or issue they are passionate about.
During his eight weeks of travel, Craig met with more than 50 people working in road safety across government, academia and industry throughout Scandinavia and the Netherlands. He also completed professional studies in road safety with the Swedish Transport Administration.
Contrary to popular opinion that a silver bullet is needed to cut through the messy and complex problem of road safety, Craig found that ways to improve safety are neither new nor radical. The problem of road safety requires a systematic method of working using evidence-based measures, supported by clear lines of accountability.
In reviewing international best practice, it is clear Tasmania is advanced in its approach to road safety. Craig believes further progress in Tasmania can be achieved with incremental changes focused on improving existing working methods, improved use of data and committing a wider range of road safety stakeholders to action.
“With great generosity, very busy people happily gave up their time to meet and talk all things road safety,” Craig says. “Beyond face-to-face meetings, I was treated to many field trips to experience first-hand the road safety success stories of world-leading nations.”
Churchill Fellowship travel also lets you learn more about the culture and way of life of the countries you visit.
“Along the way I was charmed by the Swedes’ customary morning fika, became addicted to chewy, caramel-filled Dutch stroopwafels and ate my body weight in Danish smørrebrød! All these experiences greatly enhanced my Fellowship journey.”
Craig’s project was made possible with support from the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust, which recognises that the elimination of road trauma is possible.
Craig Hoey is Manager Road Safety at the Department of State Growth. Craig’s passion for road safety stemmed from a motor vehicle crash he was involved in when he was five years old, in northern Tasmania. Luckily, no-one was seriously hurt. Craig found that setting a target of zero fatalities by 2050 – like Sweden – is a critical first step in achieving safer roads. Like most pursuits in life, committing to a goal provides focus, clarifies the future, establishes priorities and enables progress to be measured.