ONLY one quarter of the Victorian population lives outside of the Melbourne metropolitan area, yet regional areas account for more than half of the state’s road toll.
In Greater Shepparton alone, seven people were killed on local roads in 2019. So far in 2020, three drivers have lost their lives, including one this month on Numurkah Road, near Balaclava Road.
According to new research by the Australian Road Safety Foundation (ARSF), one in five drivers confess to being more likely to break a road rule in rural areas, with speed being the most common dangerous driving act drivers are prepared to risk.
Drunk driving, distraction and fatigue are the other top behaviours impacting rural drivers.
Amazingly, the data revealed metro drivers not only wrongly believe rural roads are safer than metro streets, almost half incorrectly claimed that more road fatalities occur in city areas.
ARSF founder, Russell White, said when it came to reasons for increasing risky behaviour on rural roads, not getting caught was the most common response, and it was most prevalent amongst regional drivers.
He added, “The research also tells us that on rural roads, local drivers are more cognisant of their behaviour causing harm to others, whereas metro drivers are more likely to only be concerned with doing harm to themselves.”
