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Legislative Council - Fifty-First Parliament, Second Session (51-2)
2008-02-28 Daily Xml
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ROAD SAFETY

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER (14:50): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Minister for Road Safety a question about car seatbelt laws.

Leave granted.

The Hon. I.K. HUNTER: I understand that in 2007 there were 17 fatalities and 78 people seriously injured in car accidents who were not wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash. Will the Minister for Road Safety please explain to the council what the state government is doing to further encourage drivers and their passengers to buckle up?

The Hon. CARMEL ZOLLO (Minister for Emergency Services, Minister for Correctional Services, Minister for Road Safety, Minister Assisting the Minister for Multicultural Affairs) (14:51): I thank the honourable member for his important question. I am certain that road safety initiatives have the support of all in this chamber. As I look across the chamber, I am reminded that the Hon. Caroline Schaefer met my husband before I did, and she is nodding. My husband was a passenger in a fatal crash more than 35 years ago. He was travelling in country South Australia with a mate to catch up with a relative (by marriage) of the Hon. Caroline Schaefer. The car rolled. My husband survived, essentially with just a few cuts, which needed stitching, and some bruising. He was wearing his seatbelt. The driver, his mate, was not. He was thrown from the vehicle and subsequently died of internal injuries. That was more than 35 years ago.

The statistics for not wearing seatbelts then were high and, sadly, they still are. It is, indeed, a sad reality that too many people are dying on our roads because they are not wearing seatbelts. Since 2002, 149 people have died on South Australian roads because they were not buckled up. Their complacency and ignorance is no excuse for this high-risk behaviour. This month the state government and the Motor Accident Commission have been warning motorists and passengers of the dangers of not wearing a seatbelt through a new road safety campaign. The campaign's message directly relates to new laws that come into force from 1 March when drivers will be responsible for ensuring that all their adult passengers (that is, those aged 16 and over) are properly restrained, in the same way they are now responsible for passengers aged under 16.

Market research has identified that South Australians tend to believe they will injure only themselves if they choose not to wear a seatbelt. This is a myth. The campaign highlights the serious injury someone can cause to others if they are not wearing a seatbelt. It is a confronting awareness campaign but one with a strong educational message—seatbelts save lives, and all vehicle occupants need to use them.

Research shows that wearing a seatbelt doubles your chances of surviving a serious crash. A study by the Australian Road Research Board found seatbelts to be particularly effective at minimising injury in single-vehicle crashes. On average, between 2002 and 2006, the 30 to 39 year old age group had the highest proportion of non-seatbelt wearing fatalities, 32 per cent; 40 to 49 year olds, 29 per cent; and 20 to 24 year olds, 28 per cent. It is alarming that the proportion of fatalities in the nought to 15-year-olds not restrained was 26 per cent. Of the occupants killed or injured who were not wearing a seat belt most were males (72 per cent), with around 61 per cent of these deaths or injuries occurring on rural roads.

Seatbelts protect everyone in a car. Without a seat belt one is a potential human missile—a missile that could be responsible for killing or seriously injuring other occupants. I urge all road users to heed the message of this new campaign, which is being run right across the state this month. The campaign includes ads on television and radio, on bus shelters, billboards and banners, and online ads.

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