Safety Can Be a Hard Message to Sell

From 2006 to 2008, the Monash University Accident Research Centre, in conjunction with the Office of Road Safety and Department of Main Roads in Western Australia, attempted to gain the support of a Local Government Area in W.A. to implement a demonstration trial of lower speed limits, based on a new Harm Reduction approach. Attempts to gain the support made over these three years included enlisting the support of the local traffic authorities, road safety community councils, the Western Australian Local Government Association and the officers of the regions approached. In spite of all efforts, no representative city or shire council in Western Australia agreed to implement the trial. This report outlines the experiences of the three years from the perspectives of both the research team and the Office of Road Safety, and recommends some future steps for overcoming community and political barriers in developing safer speeds on Australian roads.