Reward good drivers to
cut toll: Liberals
From The West Australian
By Graham Mason and Sean Cowan
March 20, 2007
A new gold licence
system that will reward drivers who go five years without picking
up any traffic infringements with cheaper licences, registrations
and motor vehicle insurance has been proposed by the Opposition in
an effort to halt the carnage on WA roads.
Opposition road safety spokesman John McGrath said rewards could also
include cheaper parking or discounted public transport in a bid to
encourage more responsible driving.
But Alan Carpenter rejected rewards, saying the solution was stiffer
fines and penalties for bad drivers.
Mr McGrath said the Government’s approach to road safety by
raising fines had failed — penalties for some traffic offences
were increased on January 1.
He called for an independent review of road safety policies.
“Motorists should be rewarded for good behaviour,” he
said. “By giving people different licence classifications, like
for instance a gold licence for a safe driver with no fines or demerits
over five years, it rewards them with certain motor vehicle concessions
on certain things along the way.
“The problem with raising fines is people either have the ability
to pay them and it is not a deterrent or they don’t pay them
and continue to still drive without a licence.”
The Premier said yesterday that he would discuss increasing fines
with Cabinet colleagues.
“I announced a few weeks ago that we would dramatically increase
the fines for people who weren’t wearing seatbelts because a
large number of people who were being killed weren’t wearing
seatbelts,” Mr Carpenter said.
“If we have to dramatically increase the fines for other offences,
then we’ll do that as well.”
RAC executive manager of member advocacy David Moir said raising fines
for speeding and drink-driving was not enough. “I think the
Government’s strategy on road safety needs to be quite carefully
thought through and I think to say the solution is to increase fines
and clobber drivers doesn’t tackle the whole situation of road
safety,” Mr Moir said.
“For our roads in WA to be safe we need safe drivers in safe
cars on safe roads and the Government has to be applying appropriate
efforts to those three things.”
He said motorists who broke the law continually probably did not care
about being fined — but he also doubted whether rewards would
work.
Police Commissioner Karl O’Callaghan suggested yesterday that
motorists who lose their licence by accumulating 12 demerit points
should pass a driving test to get their licence back. Currently, they
can drive again after three months.
Mr O’Callaghan said motorists who lost their licences —
usually for speeding or running red lights — were the type of
people who would hate to have to do the test again.
Figures obtained by The West Australian show that last year’s
WA road toll of 203 represented 9.1 deaths per 100,000 people. 162
died in 2005, representing 8.1 deaths per 100,000 people. In 2004
it was 9 per 100,000, 9.2 in 2003, 9.3 in 2002, 8.7 in 2001 and 11.3
in 2000. This year’s toll is 64 — more than 35 per cent
higher than at the same time last year.
