AA calls for greater road safety education

Media Release: 9 September 2009

AA calls for greater focus on road safety education

The AA has today called for more road safety education in New Zealand

At the TRAFINZ road safety conference in Auckland the AA’s General Manager of Motoring Affairs, Mike Noon said New Zealand is simply not investing enough in its road safety education.

“We need to better teach our children when they are first at school, our younger drivers when they are learning to drive, our older drivers as they become more vulnerable, and of course we cannot forget the importance of ongoing education for experienced drivers.”

“It is important to educate children when they are first at school, so they learn about road safety early and start to develop life-long skills to keep them safe. Unfortunately funding for one of the largest road safety programmes for primary school students has just been stopped.”

 “Our young drivers also need more education, including compulsory attitudinal training, to help them understand the risks and responsibilities of driving on our roads. Young men are seven times more likely to be involved in a crash than an average driver, and in the first six months of driving solo young women are six times more likely to be involved in a crash. We need to do much better,” says Mr Noon.

“Experienced drivers can also benefit from more driving education, especially fleet drivers. Teaching experienced drivers about fuel efficient driving techniques, for example, reduces motoring costs, is better for the environment, and means those drivers are safer while working on our roads.”

“Our growing number of older drivers are not getting the help they need, and as a result their safety and mobility is compromised. The AA is very concerned that funding for the road safety programme targeting older drivers has just been stopped.”

“New Zealand can easily fund the vital programmes and additional road safety education we need for all these drivers using the $100 million the government collects annually from traffic fines on road safety. Using fines money for road safety is supported by 91% of AA Members.”

Mr noon says “if we really want to reduce the injuries and deaths on the roads we need to embrace, and invest in, road safety education as a priority in the Road Safety Strategy 2020.”

ends

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