Road To Safety

The Sun Herald

Sunday January 3, 1993

THE controversial introduction of Random Breath Testing (RBT) in NSW 10 years ago saw its final justification last week, with news that the State road toll for 1992 closed at its lowest mark in 42 years.

State Roads Minister Wal Murray confirmed that the toll for the year stood at 12 fewer than in 1991, with a preliminary figure of 651.

It was almost half the worst toll of 1,067 recorded in 1985 and the lowest since 1950, when it was 634.

The fact that any effort to save the lives of ordinary Australians should become controversial in the first place defies the imagination.

The almost deafening cries of civil libertarians in 1982, who saw us all as losing some fundamental privilege with the introduction of RBT, have long since disappeared, replaced by a new, more socially-responsible attitude to drink-driving by all members of the community.

The police should also be applauded for their part in lowering the toll.

The more sophisticated methods they now employ to highlight traffic trouble spots, and then move to penalise motorists who drive too quickly or without due regard to the law, are exemplary.

They have also introduced successful education campaigns to make drivers aware of exactly how much they stand to lose by breaking the law.

We shouldn't stop there, however. Another interesting fact from the latest accident fatality figures is that Australia has fewer than 11 fatalities per 100,000 head of population. That compares favourably to the United States, for example, where the rate is about 15, and shows that we may now have something to show the rest of the world about saving human lives.