Thousands of high school students from across regional Western Australia will next week be the focus of critical road safety messages during School Sport WA’s Country Week.
More than 3,500 students from 51 regional WA high schools will travel to Perth in July to compete in sports including AFL, soccer, touch rugby, netball, basketball, volleyball and hockey.
RAC’s Community Education team will also offer road safety activities to students to highlight the importance of staying safe on our roads, as well as the effects of alcohol, speed, reckless behaviour, fatigue and distraction.
RAC General Manager Corporate Affairs, Will Golsby said it’s crucial to educate young drivers as they transition from supervised driving to provisional and full licenses.
“Young and inexperienced drivers are some of our most vulnerable road users, particularly in regional Western Australia,” Mr Golsby said.
“Last year, road-users aged between 20 and 29 made up our highest number of fatalities and more than 60 per cent of all road deaths occurred in regional WA.
“This emphasises the importance of educating future generations about the risks and the tragic consequences of making bad decisions.”
RAC is supporting Country Week by providing free water bottles on arrival for students, a water station to fill them up and a chill out zone to relax. RAC is also sponsoring the debating league where students will discuss road safety issues and compete for prizes, as well as a leadership forum, led by guest speaker Australian Paralympian Brant Garvey.
For the first time, students will also be able to participate in wheelchair basketball, supervised by Paralympian Clare Nott and Robert Pike, who represents Australia in the sport.
School Sport WA Manager, Peter Smith said they are pleased to have RAC as their road safety education partner.
“We appreciate the RAC’s support for students participating in sport and it’s a great opportunity to teach Year 10 to 12 students crucial road safety messages as they prepare to get behind the wheel.”
During Country Week, students will have the opportunity to join RAC Road Ready, a free membership which teaches students about road safety, the learning to drive process and buying their first car.
RAC also recommends students take advantage of other road safety programs such as Keys2drive which gives learner drivers a free lesson with an accredited instructor.
To find out more about RAC Community Education click here.
School Sport WA’s Country Week runs from July 1 – 5, 2019.
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Media contact: RAC media team, 0401 703 719 or media@rac.com.au
