QUT's Centre for Accident Research and Road Safety - Queensland (CARRS-Q) today joined a global campaign in launching the United Nations' Decade of Action for Road Safety.
CARRS-Q director Professor Barry Watson said the decade-long campaign sought to stabilise and reduce the number of deaths and injuries on the world's roads by 2020.
"We believe we can do this by effectively targeting the combined goals of safer road users, safer vehicles and safer roads," Professor Watson said.
"Almost 1.3 million people are killed on roads around the world every year. That's a death toll of more than 3500 people a day."
He said road deaths and injuries had reached epidemic proportions around the world and were comparable with malaria and tuberculosis.
"Fortunately in Australia, as with most developed countries the road toll has declined both in real terms and rate per 100,000 population over the past 40 years," he said.
"This is thanks to the various measures adopted and accepted by government and non-government road safety agencies, the automotive industry and the community generally.
"Yet last year almost 1400 people were killed and an estimated 30,000 seriously injured in Australia, as a result of road crashes which can cost the Australia economy up to $17 billion a year.
"The national death toll is the equivalent of about four jumbo jets with full passenger loads crashing annually."
Professor Watson said Queensland's road toll had fallen generally in line with the national trend over the past few decades.
"From around 30 fatalities per 100,000 population in the 1970s to less than six fatalities per 100,000 population in 2010, there has been a lot of improvement," he said.
"But there were still 249 deaths on the state's roads last year."
A forum breakfast this morning to launch the campaign was an initiative of CARRS-Q, Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads, the International Roads Assessment Program, Leighton Contractors, the Motor Accident Insurance Commission, the Queensland Police Service and RACQ.
The Decade of Action for Road Safety runs from 2011 to 2020.
CARRS-Q is a member of QUT's Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation.
Media contacts:
Sandra Hutchinson, QUT media officer, 07 3138 2999 or s3.hutchinson@qut.edu.au
Ian Eckersley, QUT media manager, 07 3138 2361 or ian.eckersley@qut.edu.au
