Toowoomba Regional Councillors today joined Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads officers, emergency services and LifeFlight representatives at Toowoomba’s LifeFlight base to take the 2023 National Road Safety Week pledge: To Drive so Others Survive.
Toowoomba Region Mayor, Paul Antonio said National Road Safety Week, which runs until 21 May, placed a sharp focus on driver behaviour and reinforced important safety messages for all road users.
“Every agency supporting this campaign is committed to saving lives and reducing road accident injuries that cause untold grief and have a huge financial and social cost to our community,” Mayor Antonio said.
“Improving driver behaviour is critical. I encourage everyone to assess their own habits and focus their full attention on the road.
“Drivers also need to pay extra attention to hazards on the roads. We’ve seen too many fatal accidents in our Region and across the state this year already, which must be addressed.”

Councillor Carol Taylor said the national campaign was a reminder that we all have collective and individual responsibilities as road users, whether we are pedestrians, cyclists, public transport passengers, motorcyclists or motorists.
“Road safety is a shared responsibility, and everyone can play their part by always focusing on the fatal five: avoid driver distractions, avoid speeding, drink and drug driving, wear a seat belt and never drive when tired,” Cr Taylor said.
“Please remember to avoid taking risks behind the wheel as you not only endanger your own life, but the lives of passengers, other motorists and road users around you.
“Council is committed to improving road safety through better engineering on our road projects and advocating for road safety education and enforcement, in addition to investigating new technologies to improve road management and safety.”
She said the Council is was working to update its Road Safety Strategy.
“This refresh will ensure that our strategy serves as an action plan that helps Council, our key stakeholders and the community participate in road safety initiatives across the Region.”
“Council will keep advocating to state and federal governments to reverse the reduction in road funding in real terms for regional and rural roads. Increasing funding for road infrastructure projects is vital to keep pace with higher traffic volumes and community expectations.
“Council’s capital works program invests in projects that enhance safety and improve traffic flow for all road users across our Region’s extensive road networks – more than 6,600 km of sealed and unsealed roads.”