The Western Australian Labor government has committed $125 million to extend the Regional Road Safety Program to cover local government roads if re-elected.
The initiative, aimed at improving road safety across the state’s regional areas, has been supported by the Royal Automobile Club (RAC) of Western Australia, which has advocated for expanded road safety funding.
Will Golsby, RAC’s general manager of external relations, said the investment would enable critical upgrades, including the installation of widened sealed shoulders, audible edge and centre lines, and other measures to reduce the risk of crashes on high-speed local government-managed roads.
“RAC has continued to call out the need for a total of $552 million to be allocated to fund over 8,200 kilometres of high speed sealed local government roads, including within forums such as the Premier’s Road Safety Summit, and across successive state and federal budget submissions,” he said.
The funding pledge follows 2023’s road safety statistics, which revealed the highest number of road fatalities in almost a decade. Between 2019 and 2023, over 500 people lost their lives, and more than 2,700 sustained serious injuries on WA’s regional roads, with half of those incidents occurring on local government-managed roads.
The financial burden of road trauma in Western Australia is estimated at $2.4 billion annually, compounding the emotional and social toll on affected communities.
Nationally, road deaths have risen for the fourth consecutive year, with 2024 marking a 60-year high in fatalities, according to data from the Royal Automobile Association (RAA). Despite technological advancements in vehicle safety, the increase has sparked renewed calls for stronger road safety interventions to address the trend.
Golsby said that a combination of state and federal funding is needed to ensure the program is fully implemented.
“It’s now important that federal funding is secured alongside further investment from the state to ensure this initiative has certainty and is fully delivered,” he said.
He added that further investments should be secured to guarantee the program’s completion, alongside the continuation of the existing Regional Road Safety Program.
In other news, RAC has issued a reminder to WA drivers to avoid locking children or pets in vehicles as summer temperatures soar.
In 2024, RAC Roadside Assistance Patrols responded to nearly 250 child lock-in incidents and more than 160 involving pets.
Golsby said these situations are often unintentional and occur when children play with keys or when pets accidentally activate the car’s locking system.
“Many people are unaware how easy and common it is to accidentally lock a child or pet in the car, or of how quickly the situation can escalate,” he said.
He urged drivers to keep their keys on their person and check the back seat before leaving their vehicle.
