A recent announcement of new helmet regulations by Minister for Roads Duncan Gay will please motorcycle riders in New South Wales. In a Transport for NSW media release, the minister explained that European standard helmets, as well as those from other countries, would soon be available for use.
A change in helmet regulations would bring NSW into the fold with other states such as Queensland, Victoria and the Northern Territory, states Mr Gay.
One of the requisites for operating a vehicle, whether it’s a passenger car, motorbike or freight truck, is adequate vision. Not only do we need our sight to ostensibly see where we are going, but our sight needs to have sufficient acuity to allow us to perceive and react to various hazards in time. Some people experience central vision loss.
While for many Australian drivers, the eye test part of the licence application is a simple formality, for others it can be a barrier to their ability to operate a vehicle.
Now a new study by Massachusetts Eye and Ear and Harvard Medical School has examined the ability of drivers with central vision loss to detect pedestrians on the road.
For people learning to drive, there are many skills that must be acquired. In addition to navigating different hazards and managing distractions, new drivers must also learn to drive safely in conditions where visibility is poor, such as night. But the crash rate is still too high.
A study sponsored by the Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development found that young or inexperienced drivers were more likely to be slower at anticipating hazards at night. In addition, novice drivers were also found to be more at risk of experiencing acute sleepiness when they were behind the wheel both at night or in the early hours of the morning.
As such, a number of states have regulations in place to limit the amount of unsupervised nighttime driving for learners.
Hazard perception is a key element for safe driving. When drivers are distracted, their ability to recognise and respond to hazards can be hindered, which can in turn lead to accidents. Mobile phones are one big distraction.
New research has found that a mobile phone ringing whilst you are driving is as big a distraction as actually answering the call.
Young drivers could be more at risk of a fatal crash when they are carrying passengers, according to a recent study. Young drivers hold 16 per cent of the licences in Australia, and also represent the age group with the highest crash rate, according to the National Roads and Motorists Association (NRMA).
NSW has the most effective random breath testing program in Australia.
In a study funded by the Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education (FARE), researchers at the University of Queensland examined the relationship between random breath testing and alcohol-related traffic crashes across Australia. With the lowest percentage of correlation, NSW ranks first on the scorecard.
NSW drivers have saved approximately $70 million through half price licence renewals over the past two-and-a-half years, according to the latest report from Transport for NSW.
Motorists have saved up to $85 after changes to the scheme were announced in 2012.
The New South Wales Government has just had its 20,000th young learner driver sign up for the Safer Drivers Course, meaning good news for all those on state roads.
The course was a project developed with consideration of the latest research by an independent road safety board, making it specially designed to aid young drivers. The aim of the Safe Drivers Course is to equip learners with the skills and knowledge to better prepare them for when they graduate to their P-Plates.
Repeat drink driving offenders will find themselves faced with an additional hurdle before they start their engines from next month.
From February 1, NSW courts will introduce mandatory alcohol interlocks which will require drivers to pass an integrated breathalyser test before driving.
According to Transport for NSW, drink driving is a factor in around 20 per cent of all fatal accidents in the state, but a recent campaign has highlighted the improving attitudes of motorists.
Operation Drink Drive 2 was conducted in early November, with authorities stopping and breath-testing drivers on NSW’s major highways as well as suburban and country roads. This year saw the operation open its net wider to test more motorists across a larger catchment area.
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