• Side curtain air bags can reduce the risk of death in a side impact crash by up to 40 per cent.
    Side curtain air bags can reduce the risk of death in a side impact crash by up to 40 per cent.
Home Action Plans Safer vehicles

Safer vehicles

New public awareness campaigns will encourage Victorians to demand vehicles with high crash ratings and advanced safety features, and to improve their driving behaviour by adopting new safety technologies.

Vehicles with high standard safety features reduce the likelihood of crashes occurring and the severity of injuries resulting from crashes.

Vehicle safety systems are advancing at a rapid rate and the Victorian Government will ensure that the state’s regulatory environment keeps pace with these changes. Actions taken through arrive alive 2008 - 2017 will increase the proportion of vehicles on Victoria’s roads with high safety ratings, advanced safety features and next generation safety technologies. The First Action Plan of the strategy will raise public awareness of vehicle safety, undertake leading edge research into the causes of crashes and test new safety technologies and systems.

 

Area of action Actions
Public education
  • Raise awareness of and create consumer demand for vehicle safety features such as:
    • electronic stability control (ESC)
    • head protecting side air bags
    • intelligent seatbelt reminder systems
    • active head restraint systems/anti-whiplash systems
    • high pedestrian safety ratings
    • intelligent speed assist (ISA).
  • Undertake targeted campaigns to:
    • promote selection of safer vehicles by corporate fleets, including through OHS policies
    • encourage vehicle manufacturers to include alcohol interlocks as standard features of all new vehicles
    • encourage vehicle manufacturers to include alcohol interlocks as standard features of all new vehicles
    • encourage seatbelt use by teenage and young adult passengers, and all rear seat passengers
    • encourage seatbelt and child restraint use, particularly by non-English speaking road users.
Enforcement
  • Target seatbelt wearing of all vehicle occupants, particularly among teenage and young adult passengers, and all rear seat passengers.
Technology
  • Work with the vehicle industry on the accelerated introduction of safety features in new vehicles. 
  • Implement systems that will allow intelligent speed assist technology to function across Victoria. Intelligent speed assist (ISA) automatically warns a driver when they intentionally or inadvertently travel over the speed limit. Most ISA systems establish the position of the vehicle on the road, and compares the current speed of the vehicle with the speed limit at that location. The system then issues audible and visual warnings if the vehicle exceeds this limit.
Research and data
  • Encourage safety innovations by motorcycle manufacturers, including airbag protection.
  • Assess the potential impact on road trauma of new fatigue monitoring devices.
  • Continue supporting the new car crash testing program in Australia, the development of Used Car Safety Ratings and the Australian National Crash Information System (ANCIS).
  • Continue the enhanced crash investigation project to identify contributing factors and effective road safety solutions for common crash types.
  • Investigate the introduction of lane departure warning systems, where the driver is alerted to potential run-off-road and fatigue related crashes by in-vehicle warning devices.
  • Introduce trials of new technologies to assist in tackling tailgating and/or enforcing following distance requirements.
  • Investigate potential incentive options for consumers to purchase new vehicles with high levels of proven safety technology.
  • Develop strategies and work with stakeholders, insurance companies, vehicle manufacturers and other government agencies such as the Transport Accident Commission with the aim of ensuring that new technology such as electronic tachographs, speed and hazard alerting systems, and intelligent speed assist technology are fitted to new vehicles and retro-fitted to older vehicles as soon as possible.
  • Develop a global positioning system (GPS) based speed and hazard zone mapping system to integrate with intelligent speed assist systems.
  • Work with Victoria Police to ensure vehicle condition and vehicle safety information is collected at the scene of a crash.
Legislation
  • Introduce a requirement for registration that all new vehicles manufactured after 31 December 2010 be fitted with electronic stability control and all new vehicles manufactured after 31 December 2011 be fitted with head protecting technology (such as side curtain airbags) should a national system not be in place at this time.
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