Tasmania ranks last on key road safety indicator as peak motorist body calls for greater action

Tasmania’s soaring road toll has been highlighted in new figures released by the nation’s peak motorist body, which has issued a call for further action to stop people dying on our roads.

Fatal car crash, Arthur Highway near Sorell. Picture: Laura Placella

Tasmania recorded the biggest increase in road deaths of any state and territory in the year to January 31, according to new data released by the nation’s peak motoring body.

It comes after a horror year on the state’s roads, which saw 51 people lose their lives.

Figures released by the Australian Automobile Association (AAA) on Sunday show that there was a 7.3 per cent increase in road deaths across Australia in the 12 months to January 31, 2023.

There were 1208 deaths on the roads in that period, a jump of 82 per cent on the previous year, which the AAA said should be of serious concern to governments.

Tasmania saw a 44.4 per cent increase in its road toll, ahead of all other states and territories, including the ACT (+41.7 per cent) and the Northern Territory (+28.6 per cent).

Rest In Peace: The faces of Tasmania’s 2022 fatal crashes

Australian Automobile Association managing director Michael Bradley. Picture: Sean Davey/Supplied

AAA managing director Michael Bradley said the peak body was “deeply concerned by Australia’s worsening road toll and the lack of available information regarding its cause”.

He called on governments across the country to regularly release data relating to the safety assessment of road infrastructure and comprehensive details of casualty crashes, including type, location, conditions, vehicle information, and road user details.

“Too many government commitments remain unmeasured, undefined, or unreported, and this continues to inhibit the development of evidence-based responses to the factors causing so much death and injury,” Mr Bradley said.

Infrastructure and Transport Minister Michael Ferguson.

The AAA has made a federal budget submission asking the Commonwealth to make road funding to the states contingent on governments releasing crash data in a “timely” and “consistent” manner.

The body has also called on the federal government to reinvest all fuel excise revenue paid by motorists into land transport infrastructure initiatives.

State Infrastructure and Transport Minister Michael Ferguson acknowledged that 2022 was a “heartbreaking year on our roads” and said the government was working to implement the 42 initiatives contained in the Towards Zero Action Plan 2020-2024.

“Dangerous drivers will continue to be targeted on our roads as more cameras are introduced in 2023, with new camera technology detecting illegal mobile phone use and seatbelt noncompliance to be trialled early this year,” he said.

“The new speed camera program is supported by the Over is Over campaign, which challenges motorists to rethink their attitudes to speed and encourages them to adjust their behaviour by not driving over the speed limit, at any level.”

Crash statistics are published at transport.tas.gov.au/road_safety_and_rules/crash_statistics.