Phone use is the most concerning road safety issue: Survey

‘Drivers using phones’ was overwhelmingly the safety issue concerning respondents most, with 42.6 per cent of the votes cast.

What road safety issue concerns you most?

The February 2024 RACV poll was cast partly in response to the Victorian Government revealing that over 17 million dollars in fines were issued to drivers detected by cameras breaching the new distracted driving rules during the first six months of enforcement.

The mobile phone and seatbelt camera detection systems were implemented as part of the Victorian Road Safety Strategy 2021-2030 at cost of $33.7 million. They captured 30,231 distracted drivers from 1 July to 30 December 2023, with drivers facing penalties of four demerit points and a fine of $577.

“The RACV poll highlights that Victorians are still noticing people using their phones or devices while driving and they have highlighted it as their top safety concern on our roads,” Mr Williams said.

“Distracted driving is a major contributor to road crashes and we all need to do our part and make sure we put our devices away and concentrate on driving safely.

“This poll and the data from distracted driver cameras, highlights that we still need to focus on educating drivers about this rule – which, put simply, generally means don’t touch your unmounted or wearable device while you’re driving or sitting in traffic.”

News

The Victorian Government has announced a crack-down on driver distraction, with new AI-enabled camera systems and a focus on modern technology