Australian Car Advice | News Blog

Read more…

Despite the massive increase (and intensely advertised) number of speed cameras and police on QLD roads, the sunshine state has once again, recorded the worst toll for the nation.

Queensland Premier Anna Bligh has blamed speeding motorists, saying her government will review its road safety campaign with the potential for tougher penalties. QLD police have also expressed that they are at “wits end” with motorists’ behaviour.

“As a result of the continued speeding on our roads, and as a result of the continued drink driving on our roads, I’ll be talking with the Queensland Police Service and the minister for transport (John Mickel) about what else we can look at.” Premier Bligh said.

Unfortunately for Premier Bligh, she has missed the point. Last year QLD launched campaign 300, aimed at reducing the road toll below 300 for 2007. The operation involved substantially more speed cameras and RBTs.

The result? Not only did it fail, the road toll actually increased by almost 7 per cent (337 in 2006). The extra speed cameras have so far proven to be nothing more than a successful revenue-raising scheme.

What tends to concern us though, is that Premier Bligh has not even bothered to account for how the seven deaths occurred, opting to instead blame speeding without hesitation or merit.

Saturday saw a male pedestrian hit and killed by a vehicle at Craignish, north-west of Hervey Bay. That was followed by the deaths of a six-year-old girl and a one-year-old boy when the car they were in left the road, rolled and hit a tree at Murphys Creek, north of Toowoomba.

A teenager died when his motorcycle left the road and slammed into a tree. An elderly man died after a two car collision in the Brisbane suburb of Mansfield while a man in his 50s died when his motorbike collided with a cow about 10km outside Boulia, in the state’s west.

So, two motorcycle deaths, one caused by a cow, one pedestrian, two deaths in one car due to driver error and dark roads (Police did not blame speed as the primary cause), but it gets better, because according to QLD police the elderly man’s death could have been caused by a pre-existing medical condition!

What gets the blame? Speeding! Remember folks, if you can’t blame anyone else, blame speeding! At least that makes money.

When we said massive increase in speed cameras, we weren’t exaggerating, 14,731 QLD drivers were issued with speeding tickets during this holiday period, nearly twice as many as Easter in 2007. Almost 500 were caught drink driving.

What more can we say? Twice as many speeders caught, yet the road toll is higher? Perhaps, just perhaps, it’s not speeding?

Perhaps Premier Bligh should look into advanced driver training for all, compulsory re-licensing for older drivers, separate licenses for 4WD and high performance cars and focus the speed cameras on blackspots, not on straight roads.

Moving on from QLD, NSW Police issued just under 5000 speeding tickets, about 1/3 of QLD’s count, despite the state having a higher number of registered drivers. The number of speeding tickets also didn’t affect the state’s roads remaining fatality free.

It’s worth noting, however, that despite the minimal speeding tickets, 6780 NSW motorists were charged with other driving offence ranging from reckless driving, using a mobile phone while driving and not wearing a seatbelt.

The motorist which topped the state’s idiot list was a 23-year-old disqualified driver, who passed a speed camera at 160km/h coming off the Anzac Bridge.

Moving to Victoria, a mother and daughter were killed when their car slammed into the side of a passenger train today in yet another level crossing disaster for the state.

Police have confirmed that the vehicle was a four-wheel drive and the incident occurred at an unprotected country level crossing at Moriac, near Winchelsea (picture below).

The second worst state was Western Australia with 5 deaths. An eight-year-old and a 21-year-old died when the Holden Commodore sedan they were in turned in front of a Holden Rodeo - the Rodeo had right of way.

Despite wearing seatbelts, the 21-year-old woman and the eight-year-old boy were thrown from the Commodore and died of their injuries.

On Friday a woman was killed when her car slammed into a tree on the South-West Highway, 30km north of Walpole. Another women died in the State’s north, after she was thrown from her car as it rolled on a bend. Police believe she was not wearing a seatbelt at the time.

Going by the WA Police’s own press releases, excessive speed was not the primary factor in these deaths.

-

These unfortunate souls that have perished on Australian roads this Easter period, have perished in vain. The State governments continue to deny the need for better driver training, while insisting, without merit, that excessive speed is the primary and root cause of the majority of accidents.

All we can ask is that you consider the facts and figures before blindly swallowing the Speed Kills propaganda. Sticking to 60km/h in a 60 zone does not guarantee your safety. If you want to improve your driving ability and lower your chances of being in a car accident, book yourself into an advanced driving course, it may just save your life.

Alborz Fallah

Hide It

Read more…

The newspaper reported the rabble formed after several men were expelled from the event by security guards. Security guards had attempted to disperse the mob but with no effect.

“There was no sign of police inside EPIC as the mob circulated,” The Canberra Times said.

Summernats organiser Chic Henry said the event would review its security arrangements.

“I’ve talked to all our security pople and we’re having a look at what’s gone on. Security of the Summernats is always a work in progress,” he said.

Mr Henry said reports of the melee may have been exaggerated.

“What I saw on the front page of today’s paper was people walking down the road looking a though they were having a good time, we’re doing some investigation on it but as far as being a riotous situation everyone I’ve talked to has described it as quite unrealistic to describe it as that.’’

Summernats will draw about 105,000 people over four days and so far there has been no injuries or damage in the incident and only one fight at the event on Saturday.

“There was one situation of violence yesterday afternoon and that was quickly taken in hand,” he said.

But Summernats entrants, some of whose cars were forced of the cruise track by the crowd, took a hard line.

NSW Holden WB Statesman entrant Tex Norman said the crowd were “disgusting idiots”.

“You don’t need that at any show. Girls shouldn’t have to put up with it, it wrecks a good show” he said.

Entrant Tash Chibnall of Canberra in her XH Falcon ute condemned the “dickhead element”.

“We left about 11:00 last night and it took forever to get the car out. It was just crazy,” she said.

Husband Brett said while he disliked the rowdy element, it needed to be kept in perspective.

“Is it worse than at a cricket match? We’ve been coming here since 2000 and all-up it‘s not that bad” he said.

Spectator Peter from Sydney said the mob had transgressed one of the unwritten rules of Summernats by hassling women on foot.

Girls who rode in cars and utes on the cruise seemed not to mind requests for a flash, he said, but women spectators were different.

“We’ve got girlfriends and mates’ girlfriends here. We don’t need that, if they’re walking round leave them be. On the back of utes and that its different. They’re up there for the attention.” he said.

It was a blot on the record of an event which up until then had been good humoured and well behaved.

On Saturday afternoon cars were cruising the main EPIC track at walking pace, milling between thousands of spectators. Many laid short burnouts, officially banned but tolerated by the security staff.

Women riding in the cars were urged to display their breasts and more than few obliged, creating a roar from the crowd like a heavy surf whenever a breast emerged into the hot sun. But women watching the parade or walking abut the venue were left alone.

Watching it all from the top of an ASLAV fighting vehicle with the detachment of a career soldier was Sergeant Leigh McNab, there as part of the army’s recruiting drive for trades apprentices.

“Enquiries have been very strong, he said. This event is a good fit for us in terms of the skills we’re seeking.”

On Friday Army chief Lieutenant-General Peter Leahy had joined the cruise in the army’s customised Land Rover, Armygeddon.

The bogie-axled Land Rover was a noteworthy but not unusual vehicle in an assortment that aside from large contingents of Holdens and Fords extended to a Suzuki Mighty Boy (fitted with Mexican-style jump-up hydraulic suspension) to a Polish FSO Niki, with an unknown but certainly not original power plant. An AU Falcon’s distinctive, if lamentable, grille was attached to an open-topped bus.

A relatively scruffy 1957 Chevrolet got great respect as the first race car of drag legend Victor Bray.

Sunday’s Classic car show in the main arena saw such unlikely Summernats entrants Model T Ford, Renault Alpine GT coupe and an Austin 1300.

And there was a minor triumph for women’s equality at the show. Driving her 1967 Mini Cooper S, Allison Lincoln won the motorkhana.

Hide It