The motorists' association said the elephant was a symbol of the "silence" around road safety issues in the area. According to WA's Office of Road Safety, there were 105 deaths in the state's regional areas in 2014 and 79 in Perth. In the Wheatbelt, there were 2,155 people killed or seriously injured in the 10 years between 2004 and 2013. The RAC said it hoped to dispel myths about road safety such as most crashes happening at night time and only involving people visiting the area.
"What we want is for the community to start that conversation wherever they may be, in the sporting clubs, in the halls, in the pubs, in their lounge rooms, we want people talking about road trauma in the Wheatbelt," RAC general manager for corporate affairs Will Golsby said. "Attitudes, deliberate driver choices such as speed and drink driving, inattention and fatigue are major factors," Mr Golsby added. He said last year more than one person died on WA roads every two days.
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Mr Goldsby said people needed to start taking responsibility for their safety, and check the star safety rating on cars they buy. "We know that you're twice as likely to be seriously injured or killed in a one-star car over a five-star car," he said. He said statistics from last year show one in three Wheatbelt road victims was not wearing a seatbelt, and more than 70 per cent of fatalities were single vehicle run-offs. The elephant has already turned heads in Merredin, Narrogin and is currently in Northam and will continue to make its way around the Wheatbelt.
1 comment:
I live in the Wheatbelt and i think half the battle is the fact that councils plant big gum trees right near the roadside.The roads are really long and lonely between towns and people get tired and fall asleep.One second and kaboom you're dead.Those trees don't move an inch.The elephant is a good idea though.
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