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Herald Sun
18-05-2025
- Herald Sun
Angela Mollard opinion: The tragic reminders in our road toll that driving is a privilege that comes with a pulse
Don't miss out on the headlines from News. Followed categories will be added to My News. We don't know her name. We don't know if she was on her way to a birthday party or sport or the shops. What we do know is that she was five. Blonde. With a mouthful of baby teeth. In her picture she's grinning and wearing a flower crown. But that was another life. Because now she's gone. It was a split-second crash with another vehicle. An intersection. Possibly a moment's inattention. She lost her life last Saturday at the unfortunately named Luck Road, south of Toowoomba in Queensland. We don't know her, but we can see her. And that should be enough. Enough to shake us, to drag us out of our complacency and make us reframe what it actually means to drive. Because driving is not quotidian. It's not casual or benign. It's not a right you keep just because you passed a test in 1989 and can still kind of parallel park. Driving is a privilege that comes with a pulse. The little girl with the flower crown? She was someone's whole world. LIVES RUINED IN AN INSTANT A day later, 1683km away in Victoria, two teenagers also lost their whole world. It was Mother's Day. Early evening. They were in the back seat. Their dad was driving. Police say he went through a stop sign and crashed into another vehicle. The mum, 49, died at the scene while the rest of her family were rushed to hospital. Perhaps it was because Mother's Day was the first day of National Road Safety Week. Perhaps it's because our national road toll is the worst it's been in years. Perhaps it was because Detective Sergeant Mark Amos has seen too much. Hurt too much. He didn't hold back. It was an absolute tragedy, he said. A crash that should never have occurred. 'Just a moment of inattention, a moment's distraction, you go through a stop sign and you ruin your life and the lives of your family in a single blow.' The language of road deaths is neutralised and sanitised. We call them 'accidents' as if there is no blame. We refer to the 'road toll' as if it's a ledger item and 'fatalities' as if they're a faceless and unfortunate consequence of our prosaic need to 'get from A to B'. 'YOU'RE GOING TO LOSE SOMEBODY' Yet last year 1300 vibrant lives ended violently and shockingly on our roads, the deadliest year since 2012. Picture that as the equivalent of a large secondary school or three Boeing 747s. Clearly DS Amos does. Telling the family, he said, 'was no easy task'. And then he rammed his message home as hard and sharp as the sound of metal on bitumen. 'Pay attention, be alert, slow down, concentrate,' he said. 'Without doing that, you're going to lose somebody. Somebody dear, somebody close and somebody important.' Yet we don't pay attention do we? We're far too cavalier about the weapons we all so blithely operate. We treat driving like we're making a cuppa. Routine. Done with half our brain while the other half thinks about dinner, or chooses a song or asks Siri to phone a mate because driving is dead time right? Full transparency, I used to be a shocking driver. Inattentive and irritated by the time it took up. But then I exceeded the demerit point limit on my licence. Twice. I had to re-sit my Knowledge Test and complete a driver education course. It took hours. Long precious hours. It's also one of the most valuable things I've ever done. I have a new-found reverence for the road. I know the facts about speed and I know that teens are five times more likely to use mobile phones behind the wheel if they've observed their parents do the same. I ask my daughters to drive me places so I can quietly check on their habits. Every time I see a wooden cross on a highway, I picture the person it represents. How can our road toll last year be 18.5% higher than 2021 when a decade-long plan to halve road deaths was introduced? I also seek out names and faces. A LETTER FOR CHARLIE When South Australian police commissioner Grant Stevens wrote a letter to his 18-year-old son Charlie when he became the 101st person to lose his life on the state's roads in a hit-and-run in 2023 I read every word. Stevens hand wrote the letter in his son's bedroom where dirty clothes lay on the floor and an empty KFC box spoke to a life that was and would never be again. Charlie, according to his dad, 'loved his mum's curried sausages, but he didn't know where the dishwasher was.' 'I'M NUMB' When I met Danny Abdallah, who lost three children when a driver mounted the footpath in Western Sydney in 2020, he shone with grace. But we should continue to heed his words the day after his children died. 'I'm numb. All I want to say is please, drivers, be careful.' Driving is a privilege yet its consequences can be as wide as grief and as permanent as the loss of the little girl in the flower crown. Let's not wait until tragedy reminds us. ANGE'S A-LIST SLEEP HACK: I'd never thought of a 'go to bed' alarm but set one up on my phone a few weeks ago. I don't always abide by it but I like the reminder of my intention to be in bed by 9pm. SCARLET FEVER: I'm not a fan of red but recently I bought a tomato red cardigan from H & M ($24.99) and it has reinvigorated my wardrobe. Slung over a white shirt and paired with dark denim, camel pants or even with pink, it's amazingly cherry. Oops … cheery. Originally published as Tragic reminders in our road toll that driving is a privilege that comes with a pulse
West Australian
15-05-2025
- West Australian
Beldon reckless driving: Police search for driver allegedly doing burn outs on Gwendoline Drive school zone
Police have called for help from the public to find a driver who was allegedly hooning in a school zone in Perth's northern suburbs while students were in the area. The driver was allegedly doing burnouts in a grey Holden Commodore on Gwendoline Drive in Beldon about 8.20am. Belridge Secondary College lies on the road and primary schools are close by. Police found the car at a nearby home on Cumberland Drive about 10.40am, and impounded the vehicle. Road policing Commander Mike Bell said he is extremely disappointed to continue to see dangerous driving on WA roads. 'This incident is beyond disappointing, people recklessly endangering the lives of innocent road users, while also putting their own life at risk is something we just won't tolerate,' he said. 'Safety measures around school zones are in place for a very good reason, to protect children who are considered vulnerable road users around school grounds.' Police have been increasing enforcement as a part of National Road Safety Week, targeting 'The Fatal Five' which includes speeding, drink-driving, seatbelts, driver fatigue and distraction. 'WA Police will continue to work as hard as we can in the enforcement space, and we make no apologies for the action we take in trying to stop this type of idiotic behaviour on our roads,' Cdr Bell said. The top traffic cop is calling for change. 'In light of this week, WA Police urges everyone to commit to safer driving habits, so everyone can remain safe on our roads' Anyone with information on the incident, including the driver's identity, is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or report online via this link . Mobile phone, dash cam or CCTV footage can be sent directly to police here .
Perth Now
15-05-2025
- Perth Now
‘Beyond disappointing': Driver caught hooning in school zone
Police have called for help from the public to find a driver who was allegedly hooning in a school zone in Perth's northern suburbs while students were in the area. The driver was allegedly doing burnouts in a grey Holden Commodore on Gwendoline Drive in Beldon about 8.20am. Belridge Secondary College lies on the road and primary schools are close by. Police found the car at a nearby home on Cumberland Drive about 10.40am, and impounded the vehicle. Road policing Commander Mike Bell said he is extremely disappointed to continue to see dangerous driving on WA roads. 'This incident is beyond disappointing, people recklessly endangering the lives of innocent road users, while also putting their own life at risk is something we just won't tolerate,' he said. 'Safety measures around school zones are in place for a very good reason, to protect children who are considered vulnerable road users around school grounds.' The driver was allegedly doing burnouts in a grey Holden Commodore on Gwendoline Drive in Beldon. Credit: WA Police Police have been increasing enforcement as a part of National Road Safety Week, targeting 'The Fatal Five' which includes speeding, drink-driving, seatbelts, driver fatigue and distraction. 'WA Police will continue to work as hard as we can in the enforcement space, and we make no apologies for the action we take in trying to stop this type of idiotic behaviour on our roads,' Cdr Bell said. The top traffic cop is calling for change. 'In light of this week, WA Police urges everyone to commit to safer driving habits, so everyone can remain safe on our roads' Anyone with information on the incident, including the driver's identity, is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or report online via this link. Mobile phone, dash cam or CCTV footage can be sent directly to police here.
The Age
14-05-2025
- Automotive
- The Age
Blinged-up trucks converge on South Bank for Brisbane Truck Show's heavy vehicle bonanza
'Each one of these vehicles has a story,' said Todd Hacking, CEO of Heavy Vehicle Industry Australia, which runs the biannual Brisbane Truck Show. 'Each one has an owner that's poured money – probably too much money if we're honest – into making them look absolutely fantastic.' Just ask Kenny 'Jo Jo' Easter, general manager of Queensland's K.S. Easter Transport. The company's 'Pegasus Volvo' features custom airbrushed art by renowned late US painter Mike Lavallee. In 2015, Lavallee was flown out by the Viking Trucks company on the Sunshine Coast to complete the job at considerable cost, with the help of East Coast Airbrushing. 'When I spoke to Mike he said this would be an expensive project, but he said 'this will be something that will be a showstopper everywhere you go'. 'And sure enough, every show that it's been in, it's taken out first place.' While K.S. Easter is a large operation, Hacking said 75 per cent of Australia's fleet was made up of companies with just one truck. 'You're talking about mostly regionally based people who have probably mortgaged their house to buy a piece of equipment to have a profession as a truck driver, so it becomes almost an extension of the family.' Brisbane Truck Show began as an industry-only event held in Rocklea in 1968, with 21 exhibitors. Now, 57 years later, it's the biggest automotive exhibition in the southern hemisphere and the second-largest trade show in Australia. According to the Brisbane Economic Development Agency, 2023's show attracted more than 43,000 visitors and injected $31.5 million into the local economy. Hacking said that since 2019 the event had focused on involving the general public with activations and sister events. The Heavy Equipment and Machinery Show at the RNA Showgrounds and the Heritage Truck Show at the Rocklea Showgrounds are taking place concurrently, while a careers hub in South Bank will introduce 1400 school students to the heavy vehicle industry. 'The whole surrounds of the Convention Centre will be alive and have a festival-like atmosphere,' he said. The show would coincide with National Road Safety Week, and Hacking said exhibits shone a light on new safety technologies on the market, such as cameras that made it easier for truck drivers to see cyclists in blind spots. Loading 'There's all manner of low and zero-emissions technology, from just improving the aerodynamics of the vehicles right through to full-battery electric vehicles and alternative fuels like HVO, which is hydrotreated vegetable oil. 'This is the Australian industry's biggest event, so this is where you're going to see it first.'
Sydney Morning Herald
14-05-2025
- Automotive
- Sydney Morning Herald
Blinged-up trucks converge on South Bank for Brisbane Truck Show's heavy vehicle bonanza
'Each one of these vehicles has a story,' said Todd Hacking, CEO of Heavy Vehicle Industry Australia, which runs the biannual Brisbane Truck Show. 'Each one has an owner that's poured money – probably too much money if we're honest – into making them look absolutely fantastic.' Just ask Kenny 'Jo Jo' Easter, general manager of Queensland's K.S. Easter Transport. The company's 'Pegasus Volvo' features custom airbrushed art by renowned late US painter Mike Lavallee. In 2015, Lavallee was flown out by the Viking Trucks company on the Sunshine Coast to complete the job at considerable cost, with the help of East Coast Airbrushing. 'When I spoke to Mike he said this would be an expensive project, but he said 'this will be something that will be a showstopper everywhere you go'. 'And sure enough, every show that it's been in, it's taken out first place.' While K.S. Easter is a large operation, Hacking said 75 per cent of Australia's fleet was made up of companies with just one truck. 'You're talking about mostly regionally based people who have probably mortgaged their house to buy a piece of equipment to have a profession as a truck driver, so it becomes almost an extension of the family.' Brisbane Truck Show began as an industry-only event held in Rocklea in 1968, with 21 exhibitors. Now, 57 years later, it's the biggest automotive exhibition in the southern hemisphere and the second-largest trade show in Australia. According to the Brisbane Economic Development Agency, 2023's show attracted more than 43,000 visitors and injected $31.5 million into the local economy. Hacking said that since 2019 the event had focused on involving the general public with activations and sister events. The Heavy Equipment and Machinery Show at the RNA Showgrounds and the Heritage Truck Show at the Rocklea Showgrounds are taking place concurrently, while a careers hub in South Bank will introduce 1400 school students to the heavy vehicle industry. 'The whole surrounds of the Convention Centre will be alive and have a festival-like atmosphere,' he said. The show would coincide with National Road Safety Week, and Hacking said exhibits shone a light on new safety technologies on the market, such as cameras that made it easier for truck drivers to see cyclists in blind spots. Loading 'There's all manner of low and zero-emissions technology, from just improving the aerodynamics of the vehicles right through to full-battery electric vehicles and alternative fuels like HVO, which is hydrotreated vegetable oil. 'This is the Australian industry's biggest event, so this is where you're going to see it first.'
