COVID lockdowns did not lock down risky driving

LESS cars on the road during COVID-19 lockdowns did not lead to a corresponding drop in road trauma, according to a new study.

The research from the Monash University Accident Research Centre (MUARC) examined the impact of the Victorian pandemic restrictions of 2020 and 2021 on road trauma when the state was subject to major restrictions on travel and social interaction.

Although total travel decreased between 30-60 per cent at different times during the lockdowns, increased risk-taking behaviour such as excessive speeding, and drink- and drug-driving likely contributed to higher levels of road trauma than otherwise expected.

Despite a decrease in random breath testing, the positive detection rate for illegal blood alcohol concentration increased to five times the pre-pandemic rate at the peak of the first lockdown and remained high throughout 2020.

Similarly, the rate of illicit drug detection by random drug tests more than doubled compared to pre-pandemic levels.

While the total number of speeding infringements decreased, the rate of infringing per vehicle increased, particularly in metropolitan Melbourne.

The rate of speeding at intersections was up by 50 per cent from 2019, and the rate of speeding caught by fixed cameras on highways increased by about 15 per cent during the restriction periods.

Heavy vehicles had the most dramatic changes of all vehicle types, with the rate of infringing per vehicle up by more than 100 per cent, both on highways and at intersections at certain times.

MUARC researchers also investigated the changes in risk-taking behaviour in tandem with changes in travel.

This combined a wide range of data, including road network traffic data and road infrastructure investment data from the Department of Transport and Planning, fixed- and mobile-speed camera data from the Department of Justice and Community Safety, roadside alcohol and drug testing data from Victoria Police, and Victorian hospital admission and emergency presentation data from the Department of Health.

Researchers developed quantitative “intermediate outcome measures” as an indicator of risk-taking behaviour causally linked to road trauma.

Using data from the fixed-camera network, casualty crash risk was estimated to be up to 38 per cent higher on highways during the restriction periods compared to 2019.

Lead author Dr Angelo D’Elia said the regular calculation and monitoring of intermediate outcome measures using data from the various bodies could enable a better understanding of risk on the road network and provide leading indicators of road trauma.

“The monitoring of such measures would provide the ability to more proactively respond to emerging road safety issues.”

The state government is also running its own inquiry into how road safety behaviours changed during and after the COVID-19 pandemic, chaired by Bellarine MP Alison Marchant, and will hold its next public hearing on December 13.

To read the full MUARC report, head to bridges.monash.edu