Dr. Walker questions the Minister for Road Safety regarding driver fatigue in WA, referencing the National Road Safety Strategy. The Minister provides data indicating a decrease in fatigue-related crashes.

AnsweredQoN 1382Legislative Council
Asked
6 November 2024
Portfolio
Road Safety

QuestionView source ↗

ROAD SAFETY — DRIVER FATIGUE
1382. Hon Dr BRIAN WALKER to the Leader of the House
representing the Minister for Road Safety:
I refer the
minister to the National road safety strategy
2021–30 and
particularly to the sections dealing with driver fatigue. I note that previous
iterations of the strategy appear to have relied principally upon accident data
from Queensland and Victoria.
(1)
According to the most recent data available, what approximate percentage of
fatal road crashes in Western Australia involved driver fatigue?
(2) Is there any
data to suggest that number of fatigue-induced accidents has fallen in recent
years?
(3)
If no to (2), can the minister explain why this latest version of the strategy
only mentions driver fatigue twice in passing, when the 2018–2020
version dedicated a whole paragraph to the issue, suggesting —
Fatigue is four times more likely to
contribute to impairment than drugs or alcohol.

AnswerView source ↗

I thank the
honourable member for some notice of the question.
(1) In 2023, six
per cent of all drivers killed or seriously injured were in fatigue-related
crashes.
(2)
Yes. Based on the last 10 years of data from 2014 to 2023, the average number
of fatigue-induced crashes has fallen from 24 per cent to 20 per cent of total
fatalities.
(3)
Questions regarding specific aspects of the National road safety
strategy 2021–30 and related action plans should be directed to the
federal government.

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