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Safety
My Safety Counts: AAA road funding campaign
New figures show Australia’s road toll has risen year on year over the past two and half years, leading to a new road safety campaign calling for government transparency on road funding.
The Australian Automobile Association (AAA) has launched the My Safety Counts campaign in a bid to help make Australia’s roads safer.
The peak motoring body is urging motorists to ask election candidates how their road funding promises will save lives.
Australia’s motoring clubs want the next Australian Federal Government to publish the Australian Road Assessment Program (AusRAP) safety ratings when announcing major road funding, so Australians can understand why projects are chosen.
The My Safety Counts campaign aims to improve the safety of our roads.
What is the Australian Road Assessment Program?
AusRAP uses a five-star rating system to measure road safety, with five stars being the safest and one star the least safe.
For example, the crash risk for a road with a one-star rating is very high, with severe outcomes and more crashes relative to traffic volume. Contributing factors may include poor road curvature, narrow lane width, narrow shoulder, roadside hazards such as trees and poles, and a high-speed limit.
Conversely, for a road with a five-star rating, most crashes have less severe outcomes, and fewer crashes relative to traffic volume. Contributing factors may include lower speed limit, good signage, a raised pedestrian crossing, and separated bicycle lanes.
About 500,000 kilometres of roads have been rated, but the ratings are not publicly available. This means voters can't see if funds are being used where needed or understand politicians' motivations.
The AusRAP five-star rating system measures the crash risk for a road, with factors such as narrow lane width contributing to a poor rating.
How is road funding allocated?
Road funding in Australia is shared between the three levels of government, with money raised primarily through general taxation, fuel excise and vehicle registration fees.
The Federal Government invests in infrastructure projects under the National Partnership Agreement on Land Transport Infrastructure Projects (NPA) with state and territory governments. This includes the Infrastructure Investment Program (IIP) and subprograms like the Roads to Recovery (RTR), Local Roads and Community Infrastructure (LRCI) and Roads of Strategic Importance (ROSI) programs.
State and territory governments manage and maintain state-controlled roads and can allocate funds for road construction, maintenance and safety improvements.
Local councils, who maintain local roads, streets and bridges, can apply for funding from the State and Federal governments, and raise money through rates, duties and charges. Local governments are responsible for about 75.3 per cent of the road network.
How will the AusRAP rating system help save lives?
The AAA says that making it mandatory for politicians to use AusRAP when allocating road funding will save lives and will ensure funding goes to where it is most needed.
“Australian voters are paying for the road upgrades being announced, just as they have paid for the safety assessments being kept secret,” AAA Managing Director Michael Bradley says.
“Our polling continuously shows Australians are concerned that political imperatives outweigh community safety implications when funding choices are made.
“With our road toll increasing in ways not seen since before the introduction of mandatory seat belts, now is the time for all parties to assure motorists that their taxes are being spent wisely, and that safety is being prioritised over politics.”
Faded signage increases the crash risk for a road, under the AusRAP five-star rating system.
How will the My Safety Counts campaign help?
In 2024, a total of 284 lives were lost on Victorian roads, according to Traffic Accident Commission (TAC) data. Although this was slightly down (3.7 per cent) from 295 in 2023, Federal Government data shows road tolls have been increasing across Australia for the past four years, a trend not seen since 1966.
“Australia’s motoring clubs want this campaign to improve the safety of our roads, and the integrity of how they’re funded,” Bradley says.
“Baking the publication of AusRAP ratings into Australia’s opaque road funding processes will finally show Australians whether project announcements are grounded in evidence, or whether they are instead aimed at winning votes.”
How can I take action to help make Australian roads safer?
The My Safety Counts campaign gives Australian motorists and RACV Members the chance to ask those who seek to represent you in Federal Parliament whether they support using road safety ratings as part of road funding decisions.
You can engage with the campaign via mysafetycounts.org.au
