The Australian Government will lead a Road Safety Ministers' Meeting, uniting ministers from every state and territory government through an official road safety forum for the first time in many years.
Assistant Minister for Infrastructure and Transport Carol Brown will chair the meeting to be held during National Road Safety Week, in Perth today, in a collaborative forum focusing on practical steps to drive down fatalities and injuries on Australia's roads. The meeting is being hosted by the Hon Paul Papalia CSC MLA, WA Minister for Police and Road Safety.
The meeting will consider current data, trends and cross-jurisdictional education campaigns on road safety. First Nations, workplace and micro-mobility device road safety will also be on the agenda.
The meeting reflects the Australian Government's reaffirmed commitment as part of the 2023-24 Federal Budget towards Vision Zero - no deaths on Australia's roads by 2050.
Through the May Budget the Australian Government has increased its funding commitment to road safety. The Government will continue delivering road safety improvements through the Road Safety Program, with over $976 million available for new infrastructure projects across 2023-24 and 2024-25, building on the more than 1,400 projects delivered to date.
A further $43.6 million has been committed to the new National Road Safety Action Grants Program (NRSAGP) over four years from 2022-23. The NRSAGP provides non-infrastructure grants to help implement the National Road Safety Action Plan 2023-25 with a focus on First Nations road safety, vulnerable road users, community education and awareness, technology, innovation, research and data.
The Budget also sees $16.5 million allocated to the Car Safety Ratings Program to improve testing protocols for new light vehicles and provide safety evaluations for new vehicles. These programs will help to get all Australian road users home safely from every journey, no matter the distance travelled.
