Victorian drivers could be forced to use headlights during the day to combat the road death toll
Drivers could soon be forced to turn on their headlights during the day in an Australian state – under a drastic new proposal
- Victorian drivers use daytime running lights (DRL)
- Liberal MP Nick McGowan pushes for proposal
- Research shows that DRLs reduce the crash rate by 20 percent
Motorists in an Australian state could soon be forced to leave their headlights on during the day as a result of a radical proposal to combat rising road deaths.
Liberal MP Nick McGowan of the House of Lords is calling for changes to traffic laws that require motorists in Victoria to keep their lights on during the day.
Mr McGowan told 3AW on Thursday he wants daytime running lights to become mandatory on all new imported cars and new laws to be introduced requiring older vehicles to be retrofitted.
Liberal MP for the House of Lords Nick McGowan is pushing for changes to traffic laws requiring drivers in Victoria to keep their headlights on during the day and for new imported cars to have daytime running lights (stock image)
Victoria records deadliest year on the road since 2008, with 134 recorded road fatalities since early 2023
“We’re talking about how we can make our roads safer and raise awareness simply by turning on your lights,” he said.
“Making sure cars that are being imported have these DRL (daytime running lights) devices so the cars do it automatically is a good starting point,” he added.
‘We can call on people to retrofit if they have the money. If they don’t have the money, just turn on your lights.’
Victoria is on track to record the deadliest year on the road since 2008, when 304 people lost their lives
Since the beginning of 2023, Victoria has recorded 134 road deaths, which is already 38.1 percent more than the total number of lives lost in 2022.
Mr McGowan said motorists should start using their headlights during the day and not wait for the state and federal governments to pass laws.
“They’re here, they don’t cost you a dime and it means you, your passengers, pedestrians and co-drivers are all safer,” he said.
A study published last month by Monash University’s Accident Research Center found that daytime running lights can reduce the risk of accidents by up to 20 percent.
The study found that DRLs can reduce involvement in non-nighttime multi-vehicle crashes by 8.8 percent.
DRLs were found to reduce crash rates by 20.3 percent at dusk and dawn, contributing to an overall 9.8 percent reduction in non-night multi-vehicle crashes.
A reduction in the crash rate of 13.8 percent was also observed in speed zones higher than 75 km/h.
Sisters Jorja (left) and Meghan Fox were involved in a shocking crash just outside Hamilton. Meghan was killed and Jorja is in a serious but stable condition
Teenagers Joshua Elmes (left) and Lucus Garzoli were both tragically killed in the crash
The move would follow Canada and Europe, which have mandated DRLs on all new cars and small vans since 2011, and on trucks and buses since 2012.
The push to reform traffic laws comes after a woman and three teenagers were killed in a horrific car crash in regional Victoria.
Emergency services were called to Bochara, three and a half hours west of Melbourne, shortly after 9:30 a.m. on May 27.
Alicia Montebello was driving the single lane Wannon-Nigretta Falls Road when she lost control of her red Toyota Corolla hatchback and crashed into a tree.
The 31-year-old died in the crash along with local Hamilton teenagers Meghan Fox, 14, Joshua Elmes, 15, and Lucas Gorzali, 14.
Megan Fox’s sister, Jorja, was taken to hospital in a serious but stable condition.