Safety is something all fleet managers talk about. How do we promote safety? Should we organise driver training? What should our fleet policy say about safety? Should we reward safe drivers?
Awareness and engagement with drivers on safety issues are the key challenges in most organisations so campaigns like Fatality Free Friday should be promoted widely as a way to spread the message of road safety.
Held on the last Friday in May, Fatality Free Friday is an initiative of the Australian Road Safety Foundation which calls for road users to make a promise to themselves, their family and friends to consciously drive safely and obey road rules.
Fatality Free Friday founder and Australian Road Safety Foundation CEO Russell White said last year, 1155 drivers, pedestrians, cyclists and motorcycle riders began a journey ending in tragedy and that the most effective way of reducing this number is for individual road users to recognise the important role they each play.
“We need to change our culture and use social pressure to create real behavioural change – we are the key to safer roads and it is our actions, behaviours and decisions that can mean the difference between life and death,” Mr White said.
“With the support of emergency services, governments, corporations and community groups we can take our road safety message further and help reduce the tragic, and often unnecessary, loss of life on our roads.
“Fatality Free Friday grows every year and it is our hope that the initiative will not only cause those doing the wrong thing to consider their actions but also appeal to good drivers to be safety advocates themselves.”
Caltex is a sponsor and Andrew Brewer, general manager supply chain, said safety was the leading fuel supplier’s top priority and this was a key reason it was a major partner of the Fatality Free Friday initiative.
“Like many of our customers, we’re on the road every single day delivering fuel to depots and services stations around the nation,” Mr Brewer said.
“We’re calling on all motorists to take care on the roads in the lead up to Fatality Free Friday and to make safe choices for themselves and others around them – these principles should apply every day of the year.”
