The Australian Trucking Association has received $400,000 for its Safety Truck initiative which educates young people across the country to safely share the road.
The upgrade of the ATA Safety Truck is part of the federal government's Safety Action Plan 2018-2020, to reduce the number of crashes involving heavy vehicles.
Deputy Prime Minister and Infrastructure Minister Michael McCormack announced the investment with ATA chief executive with Ben Maguire today.
“The Safety Truck plays a crucial role in helping to reduce the number of deaths and serious injuries caused every year in crashes involving trucks,” Mr McCormack said.
“That’s why we are partnering with the ATA to help raise public awareness about road safety issues when people are sharing the road with large trucks, as well as our record investment in new and safer roads around the nation.”
The Safety Truck travels an average of 60,000 kilometres a year around Australia to engage with tens of thousands of people at trucking industry events, careers expos, high schools and tertiary institutions.
The funding will cover the refit costs, including a revamp of the truck’s livery and the development of its video and virtual reality capabilities.
“We know most accidents are due to the failure of other drivers to fully understand the special precautions needed when in the vicinity of large freight vehicles, especially on country and regional roads," Mr McCormack said.
“The new Safety Truck delivers an engaging hands-on experience designed to educate 16 to 25-year-olds about the dangers of driving irresponsibly around large trucks. It will put them in a virtual driver’s seat to experience the challenges truck drivers face every working day dealing with a range of road and traffic conditions.
“That experience – combined with the truck’s road safety exhibition – will increase visitors’ understanding of trucks’ significant blind spots, large turning circles in some situations and the time and length it takes to slow down and stop compared to smaller vehicles."