What needs to change in 2017

The authority is continuing to move away from the high-impact, blood and gore advertisements of the early 2000’s, instead switching to broader educational campaigns. The reason? Because the message isn’t getting through. 

“It’s reasonable to say we can’t expect people to change if we don’t change the way we are doing things,”  TAC road safety manager Samantha Cockfield said.

2016 has been a tragic year on the road for the state and this region. Behind this area’s 21 fatalities are 21 lives that have been lost and 21 families that will enter a new year without their loved one by their side. 

“2016 has been a horrific year in regards to deaths on our roads,” Ballarat’s Highway Patrol Senior Sergeant Pat Cleary said.

“Each number is a life lost that devastates a family forever.” 

Lives have been lost on the roads because motorists struck black ice, were in a car driven by a driver allegedly impacted by drugs, veered off the road at high speed and struck a tree or hit a kangaroo. 

“The number of people killed on our roads in 2016 is a number we simply can’t repeat,” Senior Sergeant Cleary said.

“We have found it’s simple things like distraction, speed, drink and drug driving that are leading to our fatalities.” 

Something needs to change. Ms Cockfield has implored drivers to take responsibility for their lives and the lives of others. 

“We know Victorians are well aware of the key issues. Everybody is well aware of the issues of drinking, driving, speeding and driving mobile phones,” Ms Cockfield said.

“The issues are known – the key is now how do we move their motivation and awareness that it can happen to them? That we are all vulnerable.”

Ms Cockfield has continued to back the controversial TAC Graham campaign – which she says has created a discussion about why we cannot survive poor road behaviour. 

“People are telling us that Graham made them stop and think,” Ms Cockfield said.

“They had to think because it is not a campaign that tells you everything, you had to think about the TAC was trying to say with the Graham sculpture.” 

“People have understood and now they understand their own vulnerability.”