Member for Wagin Terry Waldron MLA has shown his support for last week’s launch of the first two of five major road safety education campaigns.
Mr Waldron said the important new campaigns were launched in an “effort to change the behaviour of motorists who put West Australians’ lives at risk”.
The first two campaigns target the very best and worst drivers and are based on some of the most extensive road safety research ever conducted in Australia.
“The Zero Hero campaign recognises the 800,000 WA motorists who haven’t lost a demerit point in the last three years and seeks to ‘normalise’ that good driving,” Mr Waldron explained.
“Through these ‘Zero Heroes’, the State Government aims to highlight the vast majority of drivers who are doing the right thing and to encourage them to positively influence the driving of those around them, including their children, parents, friends and other loved ones,” Mr Waldron said.
The second of the launched campaigns targets the ‘Risk Takers’ – those who speed, drink drive, use their mobile phones and do not wear seatbelts. Data shows that in 2013, 62 ‘Risk Takers’ were killed on WA roads.
Nationals WA candidate for Roe Peter Rundle said research showed that ‘Risk Takers’ seemed to endorse speeding and didn’t see any of these behaviours as road safety issues.
“They just aren’t motivated by possible personal injury,” Mr Rundle said.
“Though research indicates that they are motivated by the threat of losing their licence, subsequent loss of freedom and negative social consequences, and this second campaign reflects that.”
The ‘Risk Takers’ campaign documents the life of ‘Nate’, who has lost his licence and is forced to rely on his mother to drive him around. The campaign follows Nate over the period he has lost his licence, as the stark reality of his new life sets in.
Mr Waldron said: “This campaign aims to have those risk takers think about how their life would be negatively impacted should they end up in a similar position,” Mr Waldron said.
Research shows that risk takers find this situation much more realistic, than actually dying as a result of their risky driving.
Funding of $4 million has been allocated from the Road Trauma Trust Account to deliver the road safety education campaigns in 2016-17.
The campaigns will be shown across television, radio and online and through outdoor advertising.
