Janet Rice (Victoria, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In respect of the government response to the Joint Select Committee on Road Safety report Improving Road Safety in Australia, I move:

That the Senate take note of the document.

This is a very important report. The timing of this report is equally important. It's a continuation of a series of reports into road safety that sadly have not been followed up by action—many, many reports and not much action. In 2018, we had the independent inquiry into the effectiveness of the National Road Safety Strategy 2011-2020. Then, there was the 2019 Review into National Road Safety Governance Arrangements. Now, in 2020, we've just had the report of this joint select committee. Meanwhile, we've got the new National Road Safety Strategy, which is now not due out until next year.

There have been a series of reports, but I want to focus on the important recommendations that, despite review after review and report after report, are in this report. They recommend establishing a parliamentary standing committee on road safety and they recommend increasing funding for the National Road Safety Strategy, and there are a range of other recommendations. We urge the government to not just continue this process of report after report but look at these recommendations very closely and to actually implement them. Overall, the fact that these recommendations are still having to be made again highlights the complete failure of the Liberal-National government to take road safety seriously. The 2019 governance review noted:

It became clear through the review that an Office of Road Safety should be established immediately.

This was announced by the Australian government in late March 2019. However, rather than establishing an independent legislated office of road safety, which was the recommendation, the Liberals basically just renamed a team within the existing department, which is utterly cynical. Nothing actually changed. More importantly, this has real consequences, because, when we're talking about road safety, we are talking about avoidable deaths and avoidable injuries on our roads.

I'm particularly passionate about the safety of vulnerable road users, pedestrians and cyclists who are injured and killed on our roads at rates far outstripping the rates of injury of people in cars and trucks. Again and again, we hear about the awful tragedy of cyclists being killed on the roads. People who are just cycling—a very healthy, very efficient and very sustainable way of getting around—are tragically killed because the conditions for cycling are just inappropriate for them.

These reports all go to the challenges in improving the safety of vulnerable road users, whether they're cyclists or pedestrians; the need to be investing in better infrastructure; and the need to be seriously planning what can be done to make cyclists safe so that everybody has the opportunity and the freedom to ride safely. Essentially, if this government committed to providing extra money for infrastructure and greater funding for active transport, it would save lives. It would also be really good for the health of our cities and reducing our carbon pollution. This government is making a choice by not taking action, by delaying action, by not spending the money and by thinking they can get away with doing yet another report and another review rather than taking the serious action that's required.

In the midst of this pandemic, this becomes particularly timely, because we have seen people taking up cycling in rates like never before. As we come out of the pandemic, we know that people are going to be reluctant to travel on crowded public transport. And, yes, there will be measures taken to make public transport safer. But here is an opportunity to encourage people to take up active ways of getting around, going to the shops, going to school and going to work—to encourage walking or cycling for people who have the ability to do that if they live within cycling or walking distance of work. That's actually quite a remarkably high percentage of the population.

We know that local, state and territory governments around the country are taking meaningful steps to support people to be able to ride safely. I've been excited to see the increase in cycling and the commitment to increased cycling infrastructure in Melbourne, but we need the federal government to play their role as well. It can't just be left to cash strapped local governments and state governments. We need federal investment that is dedicated to walking and cycling infrastructure. All that's holding us back is inertia, a sense this isn't important and a lack of political will, so we really need to get on with it. I do hope that this third report in as many years into road safety will actually prompt some action from this government, so we can get on with saving lives. I seek leave to continue my remarks later.

Leave granted; debate adjourned.