Signs to show good reasons to drive safely

A NEW campaign being piloted on the Surf Coast will aim to reduce road trauma through visual reminders of the importance of road safety.

The Transport Accident Commission (TAC) and the Surf Coast Shire council are delivering the “Drive Safely Because” initiative to highlight reasons to drive safely and create a safer community.

The TAC has worked with the council to identify road safety issues that the campaign will prioritise, particularly around protecting vulnerable road users such as children, pedestrians and cyclists.

Over the next two weeks, the blue and white signage will be installed in priority areas in Torquay highlighting reasons to drive safely, such as the message “because my family surfs here” below speed limit signs near beaches.

The pilot was officially launched at Torquay restaurant Bomboras, and co-owner Tom McGrath said his business was happy to support the campaign.

“With our location, located on one of the busiest streets in Torquay (The Esplanade), it’s important our customers are safe coming to and from our business, so it goes hand in hand that we would support something that is about making our customers safe around our business.”

He said the pedestrian crossing (also funded by the TAC) installed near Bomboras had definitely improved road safety in the area.

“The number of instances of near-misses has been reduced; you don’t hear so many horns.

“Torquay in general has a lot of young people moving here, the demographic’s changed, so people driving need to be aware of that – it’s not the demographic it was 10 years ago or even five years ago.”

TAC head of road safety Samantha Cockfield said keeping local roads safe was everyone’s responsibility, and Drive Safely Because encouraged people to take ownership of road safety in their own backyard.

“By partnering with local government and directly targeting their priority areas, we hope this initiative will help make an immediate impact on the way people use roads in the beautiful Surf Coast Shire.

“The grassroots campaign aims to humanise road safety, and remind people that the foremost reasons to slow down and drive safely are the families and friends that we share their local roads with.”

In the past five years, eight people have been killed on Surf Coast Shire roads, including one death this year.

However, 278 people have been hospitalised with injuries from Surf Coast crashes in the five years to June 2020, including 50 people in the past financial year.

Shire mayor Libby Stapleton hoped the visual nature of the campaign would help motorists make a connection to the human face behind every crash.

“Whether it’s your children walking home from school, or your grandparents heading to the shops in their car, we all have loved ones we want to see arrive home safely,” she said.

“I hope this initiative drives these road accident statistics right down – for the sake of our entire community.”

Drive Safely Because will also be piloted in the Mornington Peninsula Shire, with insights and data from both campaigns to help inform future road safety partnerships with other Victorian councils.