iRAP’s CEO Rob McInerney was recently asked to share a personal perspective on COVID19 and road safety for the Australasian College of Road Safety (ACRS) weekly newsletter 

Read the full response in the ACRS newsletter here

Here are some excerpts from Rob’s perspective relating to the Australian and New Zealand response to COVID10 and road safety.

Thankfully, our response to the COVID-19 crisis in Australia and NZ has taken on the urgency and scale of response needed, and despite some setbacks recently we should be proud of our decision makers and their courage.  What would road trauma levels be in this country if we responded with the same bravery, courage, intellect, investment and coordination as has been applied to COVID-19? 

What if the realisation that we will kill and injure 400,000 Australians over the next ten years in road crashes finally jolted us to say NO WAY!  What if we brought together the incredible wealth of experts in this country in a crisis response centre rather than a summit and let them loose?  What if we used 100% of our energy to find the solutions to act immediately, rather than 90% of our energy finding excuses to say no and manage the status quo? 

The COVID-19 challenge has often been discussed as a trade-off between protecting lives and protecting livelihoods.  There is no trade-off with investment to reduce road trauma.  It will save lives, save money and create jobs.  It will protect lives and protect livelihoods.

Rob is a Fellow of the Australasian College of Road Safety – you can also read the full article and follow him on LinkedIn here

Read a recent iRAP paper on ‘COVID-19 Impact: Implementing a Life-Saving Stimulus for Liveable Communities’ here