Released 27/09/2018
Better Hearing Australia has been announced as one of eight organisations to share in $277,000 from the ACT’s 2018 Road Safety Fund community grants program.
Minister for Road Safety Shane Rattenbury said the funding pool goes towards initiatives that support the advancement of road safety research, education and road trauma prevention.
This is the third round of annual grants for the ACT Road Safety Fund, and vulnerable road users are a focus this year.
“In all, more than $277,000 will be provided to help the ACT reach ‘Vision Zero’ – that is, no deaths or serious injury on ACT roads,” Minister Rattenbury said.
The ACT Government is again pleased to support the ‘Joe Rider motorcycle awareness campaign’, as well as subsidising a program to ensure migrants and refugees new to the ACT can learn to drive safely on our roads.
For cyclists, a defensive cycling program will help to educate riders on how to safely negotiate the road network. There will also be training developed for heavy vehicle drivers, and educational mats that demonstrate the correct passing distance for overtaking cyclists.
In addition, two universities have been provided with funding to conduct research into reducing speeding and pedestrian crashes in the ACT.
The ACT Government has implemented a number of safety and accessibility measures for vulnerable road users, such as the introduction of minimum passing distances when overtaking cyclists, allowing cyclists to cycle over crossings at low speeds, and a trial of motorcycle lane filtering (expected to conclude in coming weeks).
The ACT’s 2018 Road Safety Fund community grants winners are:
Organisation | Grant | Funding |
Better Hearing Australia | RecReady Vest - a hi-vis safety vest and acompanying education campaign for recreational walkers, runners and cyclists with a hearing disability. | $67,690 |
Migrant and Refugee Settlement Services of the ACT Inc | Learn to Drive Program – road safety education and driver training for migrant and refugee communities. | $47,581.80 |
University of Queensland | An online training program to reduce speeding – trial and evaluation of an automated online driver training program developed to reduce speeding. | $45,410 |
Pedal Power | Defensive cycling – development and pilot of a defensive cycling course to provide cyclists with techniques to improve their safety when riding on city streets. | $43,270.90 |
Amy Gillett Foundation | Heavy Vehicle Awareness Online Education Program – development of an online safety program for heavy vehicle drivers in the ACT to reduce risk to cyclists. | $43,182 |
Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology | Evaluating the impact of age and gender on spatial and temporal distribution of pedestrian crashes – analysis of vehicle-pedestrian crashes for different pedestrian demographics. | $18,720 |
Motorcycle Riders Association of the ACT | Motorcycle Awareness Week and ‘Joe Rider’ – to run the 2018 ‘Joe Rider’ campaign and develop marketing material to sponsorship from industry to ensure ongoing sustainability. | $7,272.73 |
Pedal Power | Minimum passing distance mats – purchase and display of four large printed mats that provide a life scale visual representation of the minimum passing distance. | $4,622.75 |
- Statement ends -
Shane Rattenbury, MLA | Media Releases
Media Contacts
| Name | Phone | Mobile | |
|---|---|---|---|