The state government has announced a $63 million investment to expand road safety education for high school students.
Delivered by the Road Safety Commission, the Road Smart Program aims to shape positive attitudes towards driving behaviour. It offers road safety education to students in years 7 and 8, while providing interactive role-playing through virtual reality for year 9 students.
The expansion will enable more regional students to participate, including those in the Pilbara and Kimberley regions for the first time.
Data shows there were 18,900 reported crashes on regional roads between 2020 and 2024, with 13 per cent resulting in death or serious injury.
People aged 20 to 29 accounted for the highest proportion of those killed or seriously injured (22 per cent), followed by 30 to 39-year-olds (16 per cent).
Road Safety Minister Jessica Stojkovski said the investment is one of the best tools to “save young lives”.
“Road safety doesn’t just start when you get the keys to a car, and we know that young people are overrepresented in road trauma statistics.
“By investing in our young people to develop positive and safe driving behaviour at school, we are generating one of the best tools we can in helping to save young lives in the future, building safe and inclusive communities,” she said.
