The most dangerous moments on our roads often don’t feel dangerous – that’s the message behind a new road safety campaign targeting driver inattention, rolling out across Tasmania as part of National Road Safety Week.
Launched by the Road Safety Advisory Council, the campaign, Little distraction. Big impact. aligns with this year’s National Road Safety Week focus on inattention and distraction and encourages all road users to Drive So Others Survive.
The campaign highlights familiar behaviours many drivers see as harmless, such as checking a phone, adjusting a screen, eating on the go or becoming distracted by passengers or pets.
Road Safety Advisory Council Chair Scott Tilyard said many drivers were quick to recognise distraction in others but failed to see how easily attention can drift in their own everyday driving.
“You don’t have to be a bad driver to crash, just distracted for a second,” Mr Tilyard said.
Inattention and distraction have been listed as contributing factors in around 15 per cent of fatal and serious injury crashes in Tasmania over the past decade. However, the true figure is likely higher due to the difficulty of identifying and consistently recording inattention-related factors.
Last year in Tasmania, about three quarters of serious crashes did not involve reckless behaviour such as excessive speeding or deliberate risk taking. Instead, many occurred during ordinary trips, on familiar roads and in situations where attention briefly slipped.
“Distraction is not just about looking at your phone, it can be anything that takes your focus away from driving, even briefly.
“A quick glance at a message on your phone or smart watch, adjusting a screen or looking away for just a second might not feel dangerous at the time, but small lapses behind the wheel can have devastating consequences.”
At 60 km/h, a two second distraction means travelling more than 30 metres without full attention on the road before braking even begins.
Now in its 14th year, National Road Safety Week was established by the SARAH Group to recognise those impacted by road trauma and encourage safer behaviour on Australian roads.
Throughout National Road Safety Week, landmarks across the country will be lit yellow, showing support for those impacted by road trauma and reinforcing the shared responsibility of all road users.
Last year, 44 people lost their lives on Tasmania’s roads and more than 300 people were seriously injured. So far this year 10 people have died and 104 seriously injured.
The campaign will run statewide across television, radio, outdoor advertising, social and digital platforms.
