By Callum Ludwig
The Victorian Government has announced a funding boost aimed at improving road safety with 90 Victorian schools, councils and not-for-profit organisations receiving grants to help them deliver programs that reduce road trauma and save lives.
Millwarra Primary School offer one of the most comprehensive Bike Ed programs in the Yarra Ranges, doing so for almost 15 years.
Wellbeing Teacher at Millwarra Primary School Andy Bennett runs the Bike Ed program at the Millgrove campus and said there are five main things students learn from the program.
“First, they learn how to safely check a bike, just a few basic checks of their brakes and chains, Second is to ride with skill and confidence, individually and in groups and third is being able to negotiate traffic, road rules and hazards in a safe way,” he said.
“Fourth is just to leave with a love of riding and the fifth one is generic to lots of things we do but to build and instil their overall confidence. It’s amazing when you see kids come in and they are either really timid to ride or can barely ride, and end up riding really well and loving it.”
The Millwarra Bike Ed program is run both at the Millgrove and East Warburton campuses, with an accredited instructor at each campus running the program at least once a week for two terms for senior students.
Mr Bennett said teaches kids to be more cautious as riders, pedestrians and eventually drivers.
“Most kids are pretty scary around roads, that part of their cognitive development just isn’t there yet. Once they’ve been taught about riding in a really systematic and expert way, they have a heightened sense of awareness that I just don’t think you get from just being a pedestrian,” he said
“Really confident bike riders who understand basic road rules are helped enormously when they get behind the wheel of the car. The more kids we can get riding safely with confidence, we’re just going to have a way better flow-on effect, I’ve seen it in my own family.”
Every second year Millwarra Primary School has taken their students on a Bike Ed camp to areas such as Burton, Bonnie Doon or Yea, where kids have camped overnight and ridden the alpine trails during the day.
Mr Bennett said the funding boost is important for ensuring all kids have a safer understanding.
“To be honest, touch wood, I think it’s a miracle we don’t have more tragic accidents on roads involving kids, they just don’t have that awareness and there’s no reason to assume they should, we to teach them,” he said.
“We are really lucky, we’ve got a set of bikes at both campuses, most schools don’t have that and it’s hard for them without funding, if the funding for schools can get 15 to 20 bikes, that’s a game-changer for Bike Ed.”
232 initiatives have been funded as part of the $1.5 million Community Road Safety Grants Program so far.
Minister for Roads and Road Safety Ben Carroll said whether you are a student or retiree, a pedestrian, cyclist or motorist, these grants assist in bringing lifesaving messages to every corner of our state.
Continuing on improving education levels on road safety and rules, the Victorian Government are also delivering a new program set to expand on easily accessible driving education, with free road safety education and professional driving lessons with almost 3000 newly arrived migrants and disadvantaged young Victorians.
Recently arrived migrants and those with linguistically and culturally diverse backgrounds aged over 21 years old are the target of the program, funded by the $1.5 million Community Road Safety Grants Program.
Minister for Roads and Road Safety Ben Carroll said everyone deserves the chance to learn to drive, gain independence and feel confident on our roads.
“These programs ensure all road users, regardless of their path, can head out on the roads safely,” he said.
“Sadly, too many communities understand the impact road trauma can have – this program gives people from all walks of life the opportunity to work together at a grassroots level to contribute towards improved road safety.”
Recipients will participate in five core education sessions that address road rules, driver behaviour, pedestrian, and cyclist safety, and are provided two paid professional driving lessons if they hold a licence.
The program is delivered on top of the Transport Accident Commission (TAC) L2P Program which supports learner drivers who are unable to access a supervising driver or vehicle to reach their minimum 120 hours of driver training by providing up to seven free professional driving lessons, including a mentor and access to a vehicle.
TAC L2P Project Officer Steve D’Abico said he thinks the new program is an excellent feature to empower those who don’t have access to driving education.
It does two things, it helps people connect with the community they’re living in and it helps improve road safety, I think it’s a win across the board for everyone” he said.
“Professionalism is huge for a learning driver. I think an hour with a professional instructor is sometimes worth three hours with a friend or a colleague or parents.”
Since 2008, the L2P program has helped 15,000 young learner drivers, clocking up 656,757 hours and supporting more than 7,000 participants to get their P-Plates since 2008.
Mr D’Abico said the program has helped over 150 Yarra Ranges residents get their license and said education is at the centre of anything in regards to improving safety.
“Education is a really progressive way forward, it’s an amazing way to connect people with what they need to become the kind of drivers that we want to see on the road and build their capacity to be safe drivers,” he said.
“We’ve found that learners who have come through the program are not just here to get their hours but to become safe drivers and to connect with other people in the community.”
These programs are part of the Victorian Road Safety Strategy 2021-2030, which aims to halve road deaths and reduce serious injuries by 2030 and eliminate road deaths by 2050.
“We know that inexperienced drivers are vulnerable on the roads and extensive practice is the best way to mould safe young motorists. The TAC L2P Program removes socioeconomic barriers to ensure all young Victorians have access to quality driving practice and education,” said TAC CEO Joe Calafiore.
The Victorian Government has pointed to new statistics from the Transport Accident Commission (TAC) to urge Victorians to upgrade to safer vehicles to reduce road trauma while Eildon MP Cindy McLeish thinks the quality of our roads is the main concern.
The TAC figures show around two-thirds of drivers and passengers killed on Victorian roads last year were travelling in vehicles aged more than 10 years.
“Our message to anyone buying a car is to buy the safest car you can and the How Safe is Your Car website is the best place to start your search,” said Transport Accident Commission CEO Joe Calafiore.
The Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) and Used Car Safety Ratings(UCSR) are free to access and provide the latest vehicle safety information for prospective car-buyers detailing the safety features and highlighting safer alternative vehicles.
So far in 2022, 28 out of the 54 driver and passenger deaths have occurred in a vehicle built more than a decade ago and the average vehicle on Victoria’s roads is around 10 years old.
Head of Road Safety Victoria Carl Muller said the data shows safer vehicles save lives.
“When you’re in the market for a car take a moment to do your research with safety in mind because the decision you make can be a life-changing one.”
Motorists are encouraged to look for vehicles that possess include auto-emergency braking, lane keep assist, blind-spot monitoring, electronic stability control, and front, side, and curtain airbags. The Federal Government worked with the states, including Victoria, to ensure all newly introduced models sold in Australia from March 2023 are fitted with autonomous emergency braking.
People can see the latest ratings, look for information about vehicle safety features and check how safe their car is here howsafeisyourcar.com.au.
Minister for Roads and Road Safety Ben Carroll said it is important when buying a car – whether it be new or used – not to overlook safety features that can step in and reduce the severity of a crash or help avoid one altogether.
“It’s a myth that you need to spend big bucks on an expensive new car,” he said.
“Whether you’re choosing a car for yourself or your family you can find a safe, affordable used car to suit your budget and needs – and it could save your life.”
However, Ms McLeish told Star Mail that road funding was cut from the budget outcome.
“Our roads are an absolute mess, plagued with dangerous potholes and hazards, risking the lives of drivers every day and can cause accidents,” she said.
“The Labor Government cut $50 million to road safety, despite the state’s road toll increasing.”
Ms McLeish is referring to the $50.3 million discrepancy between the 2021-22 expected outcome and 2021-22 target seen on page 339 of Budget Paper 3 in the 2022-23 Victorian Budget, which the document states is ‘is lower than the 2021-22 target due to changes to the work program for the Safer Road Infrastructure Program, partially offset by acceleration of work for the Federal Safety Program.’ The Federal Road Safety program is a $3 billion commitment from the Australian Government over three years beginning in 2020-21 that aims to deliver a fast rollout of life-saving road safety treatments on rural and regional roads and greater protection for vulnerable road users, like cyclists and pedestrians, in urban areas.
It is offered to the states and territories on a ‘use it or lose it’ basis in five or six-month tranches
Ms McLeish said that at a time when Victorian roads are in the worst condition ever seen, funding to protect road users should be increased, not stripped away
“Locals, visitors, delivery drivers, truck drivers, have all had enough. More needs to be done to repair our roads and increase safety for drivers,” she said.
“No more band-aid fixes, no more whacking up ‘hazard’ signs and no more reduced speed limits as a way to deal with the deplorable quality of our roads.”
