A new campaign urging parents, guardians, and supervisors to educate learner drivers, such as those in Hume and Whittlesea, about the hazards of night time driving has been relaunched by the state government and Transport Accident Commission.
The Parental Control campaign, which will feature prominently across digital, radio, press and outdoor platforms, comes as a disproportionate number of young drivers are being killed on Victorian roads.
So far this year, young drivers aged between 18 and 25 have made up around 20 per cent of all driver fatalities and of the 14 drivers in this age group killed in 2022, seven of the crashes have occurred between 6pm and 6am.
“It is a sad reality that at any time of day, first-year P-platers are significantly more likely to be involved in a fatal or serious injury crash than fully licensed drivers, and research shows that risk increases at night,”
Roads and Road Safety minister Ben Carroll said.
“Experience and maturity are crucial when it comes to the safety of young drivers – this campaign urges parents, guardians and supervisors to educate learners around the risks and ensure they get at least 20 hours of practice at night.”
According to the state government, research has shown that in a P-platers first year on the road, they are seven times more likely to be killed or injured while driving at night, compared to fully licensed drivers.
Of the 50,000 new drivers hitting the road annually, about 31 are seriously injured or killed.
The campaign will run until mid-September, and more information can be found at tac.vic.gov.au/nightdriving.
