Calls for the introduction of driving learning programs in Queensland schools

In nearly 40 years on the track, Paul Morris has witnessed the evolution of automotive safety technology from the driver’s seat.

And yet the driver-turned-instructor has watched the toll in Queensland rise every year with a sense of frustration.

In the week since October 15, nine people have died as a result of car crashes on Queensland roads – five of them in one day.

Queensland Police say 324 people have been killed on Queensland roads so far this year, compared to 226 at the same time last year.

Mr Morris believed overhauling driver training and introducing a mandatory program in Queensland schools was the only way to reverse the heartbreaking statistics.

“If that doesn’t tell you something’s wrong, I don’t know what will.

“A car is just a machine that responds to the driver’s input, and if the driver gives the wrong input, you will have an accident… It’s that simple.”

‘Living in the past’

Mr Morris said driver training deserves more attention from politicians and he would like to see it included in the school curriculum.

“Road driving is a high-risk activity and like any high-risk activity we deal with it through modern education and technology, but we are only living in the past,” he said.

“It’s a life skill that everyone should have and the sooner the better.”

Mr Morris said he wanted to see a similar approach to the way the country had tackled drowning statistics.

The Queensland Department of Education confirmed that some Queensland schools were running driver training and safety programs and workshops, but most lasted only a single day or a few hours and were not mandatory.

Karlai Warner, 18, started learning to drive at age 14 in a program run by Mr. Morris’ company.

Ms Warner said she was a better driver because of the hands-on experience and wanted other teenagers to have access to the same education she did.

“I’m definitely more aware of the people around me,” the now 18-year-old said.

“I am a practical learner, I cannot learn by theory and I cannot write it down and remember it unless I do it.”

Not ‘just scaring people’

Researcher Dr David Rodwell has worked for almost a decade as part of the Center for Accident Research and Road Safety (CARRS) at Queensland University of Technology.

Dr. Rodwell said driver training was just one contributor to the state’s toll collection and other issues such as infrastructure and enforcement also had an impact.

“It’s not just one approach that will magically solve the problems we’re experiencing in Queensland, it has to be a more system-wide improvement,” he said.

However, he said a school-based road safety education system “can only be positive”.

“It’s something that should really be integrated into the entire curriculum.”

Dr. Rodwell said young people are overrepresented in fatal crashes and overall crash statistics.

He said any education program should be evidence-based and not just “scare people.”

“There are indications that this may not be the best way,” he said.

“I would like to see road safety treated in much the same way as sex education… as a health issue that we need to learn about, and not as some kind of punitive measure.”

Findings from the evaluation are expected by the end of the year

A spokesperson for Queensland’s Department of Transport and Main Roads said an independent study by the Monash University Accident Research Center is currently examining the way people learn to drive in the state, including learner driving tests.

The research results are expected to be made public at the end of this year.

Dr. Rodwell said he hoped the review would encourage “higher order cognitive skills” in novice drivers.

“It’s about developing skills in judgment and self-awareness of your actual skill level in relation to certain situations and driving, driving skills and abilities,” he said.

In a statement, Transport Minister Bart Mellish said road safety is a top priority for the Labor government.

“That is why all money raised through the Camera Detected Offense Program, in addition to administrative and operational costs, must be reinvested in road safety initiatives by law,” he said.

“These initiatives include education, road safety offender management programs, innovative technology trials and safety treatments to improve our roads.”

The Queensland Opposition was contacted for comment but did not respond by deadline.