QUICK FACTS
- Around 300 Tasmanians are killed or seriously injured on our roads each year.
- Young Tasmanians aged 17-25 are over-represented in this toll (around 25 per cent).
- Young drivers living in regional areas are impacted more.
- 40,000 young Tasmanians are expected to gain their licence over the next five years.
- Comprehensive and practical youth driver education program in schools.
- Education starts in Year 9, before young people get their Learner Licence.
- Work to reduce death and serious injury of young drivers on our roads.
Under our 2030 Strong Plan for Tasmania’s Future, a re-elected majority Liberal Government will:
In partnership with the RACT and the Road Safety Advisory Council, deliver a nation-leading, comprehensive driver education program in every Tasmanian school from Year 9 to 12:
- To drive down rates of serious injury and death of young drivers;
- Create generations of safe young drivers;
- Deliver a dedicated program supporting disadvantaged youth to obtain their licence in partnership with the community.
An important part of our 2030 Strong Plan for Tasmania's Future is to create safer communities across our State, including on our roads.
Deliver a nation-leading, comprehensive driver education program
Each year around 300 Tasmanians are killed or seriously injured on our roads. Young people aged between 17 and 25 are consistently over-represented in this toll (around 25 per cent).
Over the past five years, 17-25 year olds from rural and regional areas have been over-represented in fatalities and serious crashes – 38 young people in the urban electorate of Clark compared to 136 in the rural electorate of Lyons.
Every accident, every serious injury and death has a devastating, lifetime impact on individuals, families and loved ones.
Just as we teach children in our schools how to swim to ensure their safety around water, a re-elected majority Liberal Government will put in place a nation-leading, comprehensive young driver education program starting in Year 9 in every school, before students even get a Learner’s Licence.
By partnering with the respected Royal Automobile Club of Tasmania (RACT) and the Road Safety Advisory Council, and engaging skilled educators, together we will:
- Develop an engaging, interactive and hands-on program for urban and regional secondary schools - government and non-government.
- Use the organisational capacity and community trust of RACT to develop an agile, responsive program that meets the needs of young people.
- Leverage existing RACT investment and community investment, including RYDA (Rotary’s Youth Driver Awareness program) to deliver a coordinated and collaborative approach to ensure the best outcomes for young people.
- Recognise and support parents and carers in their role as the ”driving coach” in many instances.
- Re-engage with young drivers as they get their Provisional licence to reinforce learnings.
With an investment of $8 million over five years, the program will be developed and managed by RACT and the Road Safety Advisory Council, in collaboration with community, government and non-government schools.
Funding will be invested into designing a nation-leading road safety education package, developing the education tools and assets needed to run the program in schools (including more driver training cars for practical learning), and building capacity to run the program in all government and non-government schools, to make the most difference as quickly as possible.
It will include $2 million to fund a dedicated program for disadvantaged youth to obtain their licence in partnership with community organisations.
By arming young people with knowledge of responsible driving through practical and in-classroom education, we can create generations of safer young drivers, and lead the nation in the reduction of road deaths and serious injury for young people.
Net Cost: $8 million over five years