Quite Interesting..

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/National/story_38438.asp

Have a read of this.. It only applies to few of us... That's if it gets enforced..

Which i doubt... Well hopefully

CHRIS

And for those who can't be bothered clicking the link, of if the link dies.. here it is. Pasted from Ninemsn.

Young driver weekend ban floated


Cruising with friends on a Friday or Saturday night could be a thing of the past for some young drivers under a radical new proposal by the NRMA.

The motoring group asked the NSW government to investigate whether measures preventing L- and P-plate drivers from driving on Friday and Saturday nights would reduce young driver deaths.

NRMA president Ross Turnbull said drivers aged 17-25 years make up 14 per cent of motorists but account for 25 per cent of road deaths.

"Whether they are inexperienced or think they are invincible, or think the law doesn't apply to them, the fact is that crash rates for young drivers are three times higher than more experienced drivers," Mr Turnbull told AAP.

The proposal is based on research conducted in the United States and is included in the NRMA Review of Novice Driver Road Safety Programs.





"In some North American states and districts, restricting L- or P-plate drivers from driving between 10pm and 6am on Thursday, Friday or Saturday nights has reduced crash involvement by between 20 and 30 per cent," Mr Turnbull said.

Between 38 and 53 lives could have been saved if these measures were in place in NSW last year, he said.

The report also found that restricting L- and P-plate drivers to only one passenger could reduce the crash rate by between seven and 42 per cent.

However, Mr Turnbull said the proposal would have to be carefully considered before any legislative changes were made.

"The NSW government should examine these measures carefully so that no one in the community is unfairly disadvantaged by changes to the law," he said.

"We know that rural communities are more likely to rely on private vehicles as a means of getting around."

Other measures included in the report were increasing the minimum age for obtaining a licence and speed and alcohol checks targeted at young drivers.

NRMA will meet with mayors from NSW councils on Friday to discuss proposals for better and safer roads.

 

Its an interesting approach that is refreshing after all the speed related campaigns.

Personally the first thing that I would be looking at is the hp/weight ratio that is allowed for young drivers. They already have this rule for bikes on the road so why not implement it across the board. Too many young drivers that have the money to do high hp motors in pos cars with bad brakes, no handling and often poor understanding of the potential limits.

There are too many stories about young guys getting fast cars on their provisional liscence and showing off to their mates and ending badly.

 

Fortunately it's just a discussion starter and not a proposed law. There are so many cases of responsible drivers who would be hampered by this idea. Many would have to give up careers and study to abide by this.

Yes the whole car culture thing can result in fatalities and solutions should be looked for. How about more driver training before you can drive a car with greater than XKw or Y:Z power to weight ratio or with more than one passenger.

Perhaps zero tolerance to speeding on L's and P's.

 

an interesting approach perhaps, but per the current use of speed/electronic infringement devices, is simply a band-aid solution -

presuming that a significant number of fatalities are due to inexperience - what sense is there in trying to reduce fatalities by restricting driving time?

I am waiting for a govt who is gutsy enough to reduce speed camera penalties and revenue, and instigate a firm/strict driver training and licensing program and renewal. Together with strict controls over age and condition of vehicles sold or in regular use, and in particular, the restricted sale of retread tires and the like.

 

Unfortunately I don't think this will ever happen here in Australia. I believe the government makes so much of it's money from road-related fines that they would not want to reduce any revenue raised by speeding fines, or speeding and red light cameras.

I heard on the news (ACA) that in Canada they have actually removed all speeding cameras due to a study by some person. His findings basically proved that speed cameras don't save lives, and that in the case where statistics show a decrease in deaths where a camera has been placed there has been a marked increase in speed related deaths elsewhere (further down the road for example). This is all well and good but would the Australian government want to lose all the easy money they get from speed cameras?

Removing speed cameras, and/or reducing fines would lose the government money. Implementing driver training would lose the governmnet even more money.

wil..

 

Some more BS in the parliment again
Why don't they ban kids on the street after 2100?

Ahhh more waste on tax money again.

 

You are jumping to an erroneous assumption.

This has not come from parliament and is no where near going there.

It is simply a talking piece tabled by the NRMA.

 

I cannot believe the crazy suggestions that politicians or the NRMA come up with.

The fundamental problems with new drivers is the lack of training and opportunities to develop car control skills and an appreciation of what happens if you overstep the boundaries of control. I regularly assist with driver training days and find that new drivers who have only just got their licence know very little about the limits of car, or how to control skids or slides. Many dont even know how to hold a steering wheel or perform an emergency stop on a wet road.

If the government and NRMA were serious about road safety they would be lobbying to introduce a similar program to the recent Motorbike licencing system. The bike system requires riders to attend two sessions that cover road safety and bike control skills. There is a limited time that a rider can hold learner plates (9 months) before having to reattend the first session. The bike training has had a measureable impact on the road toll for new bike riders ( this includes new riders of a mature age).

Rather than keep untrained drivers off the road at certain times, lets equip them with some skills to assist them all the time.

Speedracer.

 

Wot he said!

I'm all in favour of driver restrictions, but they should be based on how much training the driver has done, not on how long they've had their license.

When I learnt to dive (not a spelling error) I did the basic course and got a license to dive to 18m during daylight.

I then did a series of courses and got an advanced license that allowed me to dive on wrecks, at night and to 30m.

Why not do the same for drivers? Surely driving is as dangerous to oneself as diving, and more dangerous to others. Yet we have a written test that is reasonable and a practical that teaches you how to act (but not react). As far as I'm concerned that is inadequate for sending people out on public roads in a potential weapon.

 

Ive got to agree strongly with chris' points. The current liscencing system is far too relaxed too ensure young drivers are able to handle the possible conditions that they may come across.

Lets start with the learners permit. Has anyone noticed in the back of the manual that its available in about 30 different languages? And that you are allowed to have a translator present for the exam!

Next is the provisional test. All this does is force you to pay for someone to watch you jump through hoops for 30 mins once. (Not too sure if this system has changed along with the extended "P" license)

I guess that Im being a bit of a hipocrite saying this since I never made the time to do the advanced driving course myself but I wish I did. Ive had 2 accidents in my 7 years of driving solo and both of these would have been avoided if I had of done the training one of which could have easily of cost me my life.