Coast to Coast 100 campaign leads to new safety organisation
The formation of a new community-based road safety organisation will aim to research ways to improve driver education and awareness — a subject long mooted as probably the biggest problem road users face as they drive into the 21st century, according to the founder of the Coast to Coast 100 truck safety campaign, Lyndal Denny.
Ms Denny has joined forces with three members of the transport industry with the aim of improving driver education.
Rod Hannify, a well-known Road Safety Advocate, columnist and professional driver; Heather Jones, a transport company owner, active campaigner for better on-road conditions for drivers and driver safety and education advocate in her home State of Western Australia; and Peter Davis, a small-fleet operator and driver whose passion is to see education taken back to the old ways, have joined together with Lyndal Denny to form a new driver education safety committee.
“This new not-for-profit organisation will focus on taking the driver education message to the governments of Australia. Members believe that the complex issues interwoven into the subject of road safety can be improved through greater awareness by all road users,” Ms Denny said.
The idea was developed as the result of discussions between the four core members in response to the recent campaign started by Ms Denny targeting perceived dangerous heavy vehicle driver behaviour.
“The open forum concept that is the Coast to Coast 100 website has graphically illustrated in almost every case that road users lack of understanding and the resulting negative driver attitude — in many cases — lays the foundations for the ongoing road trauma we witness and accept across the country on a daily basis,” Ms Denny said.
“Countless inquiries, forums and meetings over the years held to investigate the complexities involved in road safety often result in the introduction of legislation which more often than not appears completely out of touch with driver needs and the realities of the situation at hand.
“This new organisation will take the issues of driver safety to the streets — relying heavily on community input and heavy vehicle industry experience. Relevant issues and solutions will be identified through community consultation with trucking industry representatives prior to governments being lobbied for workable legislative change.”
NOTE: Near the end of August, the Coast to Coast 100 website had received 135,117 hits after being in operation for seven weeks.
