Check your speedometer and see what is the highest speed. Is it 220, 240 or 260 kilometres per hour?
"Chances are it's between 210 - 240 kilometres an hour," says Professor Ian Johnstone of the Monash University Road Accident Research Centre. "Unfortunately, speed is what sells cars and this is our dilemma," he goes on to say.
The Monash University Road Accident Research Centre deals with Injury Prevention in all its forms. Injury is the greatest killer of those greater than 50 years of age. Our national average road toll is 1600 deaths per year. For every death, there's another ten who are seriously injured to permanent disability - and that's a strain to our public health system as well as the emotional strain to the extended family.
Injury is a public health problem. For every dollar spent on injury prevention programs there's $5 spent on cancer research and $9 spent on heart disease research.
So why isn't injury prevention considered as important as these?
"It's because we've got the balance wrong," answers Ian. " We need to look at Safe System Design. We've focussed on regulation, legislation, enforcement and punishment but it's not enough."
Ian talked about the need for car manufacturers to take more responsibility in safe system design. Warning systems for seat belts and structural changes in engine may not be enough. It's time to look at the speedometers, some of which show over the speed limit up to as high as 310 kilometres.
"Why are we allowing people an instrument that tells us that half of which is illegal? Shouldn't we have speedometers that show the exact speeds between the legal limits - say between 40 and 70 kilometres so that you know exactly what speed you are doing rather than having to squint and guess the speed between this range?"
Ian ended the presentation urged us that we have a part to play and not be silent but to take a stance against this public health problem.
Professor Ian Johnstone may be contacted here.
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