Fewer road fatalities in 2011

24 February 2012

Western Australia has recorded one of its lowest road fatality rates since the early 1970’s yet 179 people still lost their lives on the State’s roads last year.

The RAC and WA Police have again combined to place the State’s road safety performance under the spotlight in the latest publication of the Fatal and Serious Injuries on WA Roads 2011 report.

The road toll of 179 is WA’s best result since 2005 when 162 people lost their lives and the figure is below the five year average of 205 deaths.

It’s the first time Western Australia’s fatality rate had fallen below 8 deaths per 100,000 people since figures have been collected.

But RAC President Tim Shanahan and WA Police Commissioner Karl O’Callaghan said the improved figures were of little comfort to those who had lost loved ones in road fatalities.

Using ABS life expectancy figures, the 179 deaths also represent 7,109 lost years of human life – Western Australian men had 4,953 years of living taken from them while women lost 2,156 years.

“Not only have the families of the victims been robbed of a loved one but the community will also miss out on the talents, skills and contributions which these people could have made if their lives had not been cut short,” Mr Shanahan said.

“Police officers face the toughest of duties when they have to tell parents, partners and families that someone they love will not be coming home. Each death on our roads brings a lifetime of grief for these people and the ripple effect is felt throughout the community,” Commissioner O’Callaghan said.

Commissioner O’Callaghan and Mr Shanahan said the objective of the annual statistical report was to inform the public debate on road safety in Western Australia.

The report shows that men continue to be over-represented in the statistics, accounting for seven out of 10 fatalities.

Motorcyclists were also a highly vulnerable group, accounting for 20% of all fatalities in the Perth metropolitan area, mostly occurring on Fridays and weekends.

While alcohol and speed continue to be the dominant cause of fatal crashes (39%), there was also a significant increase in the number of fatal crashes attributed to inattention (24%).

Regional Western Australia is again under the spotlight with the Wheatbelt and Kimberley Police Districts recording death and serious injury rates several times that of the State.

While these statistics do not take into account the significant number of road users that are visiting or travelling though those districts, the very high long term rate continues to be of concern.

The report also shows one in four people killed were not wearing a restraint and that rate was one in three in regional WA.

This is the second time the annual summary has been published. A full copy of the report is available at www.police.wa.gov.au and or view it here (pdf).

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