❓ Ms. Giddens asks about the impact of "Tom's Law" on new driver safety and other road trauma reduction measures. The Minister outlines the law's restrictions, related education campaigns, and additional investments in road safety programs and infrastructure.
AnsweredQoN 837Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
ROAD TRAFFIC
(AUTHORISATION TO DRIVE) AMENDMENT (DRIVING RESTRICTIONS) BILL 2024 — ''TOM'S
LAW''
837. Ms K.E. GIDDENS to the Minister for Road Safety:
I refer to the passage of the new
road safety legislation called ''Tom's Law'' through Parliament
yesterday.
(1) Can the minister advise the
house how these laws will help to keep new drivers safe on our roads?
(2) Can the
minister outline to the house what other measures the Cook Labor government is
implementing to reduce road trauma on WA roads?
(AUTHORISATION TO DRIVE) AMENDMENT (DRIVING RESTRICTIONS) BILL 2024 — ''TOM'S
LAW''
837. Ms K.E. GIDDENS to the Minister for Road Safety:
I refer to the passage of the new
road safety legislation called ''Tom's Law'' through Parliament
yesterday.
(1) Can the minister advise the
house how these laws will help to keep new drivers safe on our roads?
(2) Can the
minister outline to the house what other measures the Cook Labor government is
implementing to reduce road trauma on WA roads?
AnswerView source ↗
I
thank the honourable member for the question. It was great to be at Applecross
Senior High School with the member only a week or two ago to meet some
of the students and hear their ideas on how to keep all of us safe on the
roads.
(1)–(2) As the member said, I am pleased to confirm that
the other place passed ''Tom's Law'' yesterday afternoon. I thank all members of this house and the other place for their support of that
important legislation. I also thank advocate Samantha Saffioti for her advocacy
for ''Tom's Law''.
As members know, from 1 December all
red P-plate drivers will be restricted to one passenger, with some limited exemptions for immediate family members,
experienced drivers and employment reasons. Can I say that I really look
forward to, in the not-too-distant future, signing the regulations to make that
happen.
As I have said in this place
previously, it is a sad fact that drivers aged 17 to 19 years are twice as
likely as other drivers to be involved in a fatal crash. Being a novice driver
is inherently risky and we know the danger of combining that with distractions
from passengers. An education campaign to get this message out has already
started, with information now available on the Department of Transport website,
but there will be more communications to come. We are writing to 19 000 current
red P-plate licence holders. They will also receive a text or an email through
their DoTDirect account. Broader advertising across a variety of mediums will
begin soon. We will be spreading the message at the department's driver
and vehicle service centres and further afield with support from other agencies
including Main Roads WA and the Western Australia Police Force. The Road Safety
Commission will also be active at Leavers making sure that the messages are
heard by those celebrating the end of their schooling.
Madam Speaker, this is not the only
initiative we have to address safety on our roads. Since the Premier called for
and we held the road safety round table in September, we have allocated an
extra $57.3 million to programs and infrastructure to make our roads safer. We
allocated $20 million to the really important regional road safety program to
expand the program to local roads with the help of the Western Australian Local Government Association and the RAC. We know
that the program saves lives. We have put shoulder sealing and audible
edge lines on almost 10 000 kilometres of road in just the last four years. We
are expanding the safe driver reward scheme. It is a carrot to go with the red
P-plate restrictions. There will be a further
$100 discount for people who spend their first two years as a P-plate driver
and their first year on a full licence demerit point free. We are
expanding the Prevent Alcohol and Risk-related Trauma in Youth program so that
more learners can attend hospitals to have a look at the impact of trauma, and
we will ensure that the program is accessible in our regions through the use of
technology.
We are also developing, through the
Road Safety Commission, a program to allow the friends and family of road crash
survivors and those killed on our roads, like Daniel Campo for his son Nick,
to, if they wish, go to schools, clubs and
workplaces to spread the message about taking risky decisions on our roads.
Finally , we have also announced a review of our existing learner and
provisional driver schemes as well as the skills
and training requirements for motorcycle and heavy vehicle licences. It will
consider the latest research and best practice experience and also
consult with the Western Australian people, because this is the responsibility
of all of us in this state, including all members in the chamber today.
I know that the Speaker as a former
Minister for Road Safety knows that road safety touches us all. The Cook government is committed to doing what it can
to address road safety but we all need to play our part to keep everyone
safe on the roads.
thank the honourable member for the question. It was great to be at Applecross
Senior High School with the member only a week or two ago to meet some
of the students and hear their ideas on how to keep all of us safe on the
roads.
(1)–(2) As the member said, I am pleased to confirm that
the other place passed ''Tom's Law'' yesterday afternoon. I thank all members of this house and the other place for their support of that
important legislation. I also thank advocate Samantha Saffioti for her advocacy
for ''Tom's Law''.
As members know, from 1 December all
red P-plate drivers will be restricted to one passenger, with some limited exemptions for immediate family members,
experienced drivers and employment reasons. Can I say that I really look
forward to, in the not-too-distant future, signing the regulations to make that
happen.
As I have said in this place
previously, it is a sad fact that drivers aged 17 to 19 years are twice as
likely as other drivers to be involved in a fatal crash. Being a novice driver
is inherently risky and we know the danger of combining that with distractions
from passengers. An education campaign to get this message out has already
started, with information now available on the Department of Transport website,
but there will be more communications to come. We are writing to 19 000 current
red P-plate licence holders. They will also receive a text or an email through
their DoTDirect account. Broader advertising across a variety of mediums will
begin soon. We will be spreading the message at the department's driver
and vehicle service centres and further afield with support from other agencies
including Main Roads WA and the Western Australia Police Force. The Road Safety
Commission will also be active at Leavers making sure that the messages are
heard by those celebrating the end of their schooling.
Madam Speaker, this is not the only
initiative we have to address safety on our roads. Since the Premier called for
and we held the road safety round table in September, we have allocated an
extra $57.3 million to programs and infrastructure to make our roads safer. We
allocated $20 million to the really important regional road safety program to
expand the program to local roads with the help of the Western Australian Local Government Association and the RAC. We know
that the program saves lives. We have put shoulder sealing and audible
edge lines on almost 10 000 kilometres of road in just the last four years. We
are expanding the safe driver reward scheme. It is a carrot to go with the red
P-plate restrictions. There will be a further
$100 discount for people who spend their first two years as a P-plate driver
and their first year on a full licence demerit point free. We are
expanding the Prevent Alcohol and Risk-related Trauma in Youth program so that
more learners can attend hospitals to have a look at the impact of trauma, and
we will ensure that the program is accessible in our regions through the use of
technology.
We are also developing, through the
Road Safety Commission, a program to allow the friends and family of road crash
survivors and those killed on our roads, like Daniel Campo for his son Nick,
to, if they wish, go to schools, clubs and
workplaces to spread the message about taking risky decisions on our roads.
Finally , we have also announced a review of our existing learner and
provisional driver schemes as well as the skills
and training requirements for motorcycle and heavy vehicle licences. It will
consider the latest research and best practice experience and also
consult with the Western Australian people, because this is the responsibility
of all of us in this state, including all members in the chamber today.
I know that the Speaker as a former
Minister for Road Safety knows that road safety touches us all. The Cook government is committed to doing what it can
to address road safety but we all need to play our part to keep everyone
safe on the roads.
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