Pedestrian deaths are driving up the road toll

Australia’s 15-year high road toll is essentially attributable to a pointy increase in pedestrian deaths, says the Australian Automobile Association (AAA).

Based on latest data from the Bureau of Infrastructure and Transport Research Economics, a pointy increase in pedestrian deaths within the 12 months to July 31 pushed Australia’s road deaths to their highest level for any corresponding period in 15 years.

A complete of 1340 people died on the nation’s roads within the 12 months to July 31 – 2.9 per cent greater than within the equivalent period a 12 months earlier, and the worst result since 1395 deaths were recorded within the corresponding period in 2010.

CarExpert can prevent 1000’s on a brand new automobile. Click here to get an important deal.

The death toll included 205 pedestrians – up 44, or 27.3 per cent, from the previous corresponding period.

Since 2021, when Australian governments adopted a National Road Safety Strategy goal of halving road deaths by 2030, total road fatalities have increased by 22.2 per cent.

In the identical period, fatalities amongst pedestrians have increased by 48.6 per cent.

Source: Bureau of Infrastructure and Transport Research Economics statistics

On a state-by-state basis, the most important increases in road deaths within the 12 months to July 31 were in Tasmania (up 41.9 per cent), the ACT (up 12.7 per cent) and Western Australia (12.7 per cent), while road deaths declined within the Northern Territory (down 31.3 per cent) and South Australia (down 9.4 per cent).

Nevertheless, the Northern Territory recorded the nation’s highest rate of road deaths per 100,000 residents, at 16.8, followed by Tasmania (7.6), Western Australia (6.8), Queensland (5.3), South Australia (4.6), Victoria (4.3), NSW (4.2), and the ACT (1.7).

Meantime, men accounted for 993 road deaths within the 12 months to July 31 – down 1.6 per cent on the identical period in 2024. But female road deaths increased to 346 – up 18.9 per cent.

The rise in pedestrian deaths was driven by sharp rises in WA (31 deaths – up from 14 a 12 months earlier) and Queensland, where there have been 37 deaths – up from 23 a 12 months earlier.

“The National Road Safety Strategy is falling well wanting its targets,” said Michael Bradley, the managing director of the AAA, which represents Australia’s state-based motoring clubs and their 9.5 million members.

Echoing the comments he made earlier this month, when Australia’s road toll hit a 15-year high throughout the 12 months to June 30, Mr Bradley said the AAA is worried by the dearth of clarity regarding the aspects driving the rise.

“Governments must look closely at their road trauma data to seek out out why, then take corrective motion to avoid wasting lives.”

Nevertheless, he noted that the nation’s transport and infrastructure ministers agreed at a gathering in Melbourne last week that the WA government would work with the National Transport Commission to supply a draft national integrated regulatory framework on pedestrian safety relating to non-public mobility devices.

Coincidentally, Victoria’s Transport Accident Commission also issued a press release today highlighting the actual fact speeding claimed 400 lives across the country and greater than 4100 up to now decade, compared with a median of just six annual deaths from sharks, crocodiles or snakes between 2001 and 2021.

The TAC says it surveyed greater than 1000 Australians and located that almost all perceive dangerous wildlife as a greater threat than speeding, which it claims is a consider around one-third of road fatalities in each Victoria and nationally.

When asked what they found to be ‘extremely dangerous’, 74.5 per cent of respondents said venomous snakes, followed by crocodiles (68.8 per cent) and sharks (61.8 per cent), but only 11.2 per cent felt that driving 5km/h over the speed limit was extremely dangerous, increasing to 29.8 per cent when considering driving 10km/h over the limit.

To spotlight this “stark disconnect”, the TAC has launched a brand new exhibit in central Melbourne “to challenge common perceptions of danger, and prompt visitors to reflect on their very own driving behaviour”.

Situated on the plaza between Melbourne Museum and the Royal Exhibition Centre, the Australia’s Deadliest Predator exhibit replicates a dangerous zoo animal enclosure and encompasses a re-enactment of a automobile that has crashed after losing control because of speeding.

“Australia’s Deadliest Predator unapologetically calls out the social acceptance of speeding in a novel way, which we hope will encourage road users to decelerate and stay inside speed limits,” said TAC CEO Tracey Slatter.

“The info and research are clear – speed kills, and the one way we will prevent the tragic lack of life is to drive throughout the speed limit each time we use our roads.

“We are going to proceed to make use of thought‐frightening initiatives equivalent to Australia’s Deadliest Predator to drive home the risks of speeding until we realise a future where nobody dies or is injured on our roads,” Ms Slatter said.

To date this 12 months 186 lives have been lost on Victorian roads – up from 180 in the identical period last 12 months.