Philosophy & Goals
Background
In the last ten years significant improvements have been made in car crash rates in West Australia. The most recent figures prove that. However government, road safety agencies, private organisations, community groups and parents consider that although the roads are safer, they are not yet as safe as they should be.
Much of the improvement achieved to date can be attributed to improvements in road and vehicle design and to the introduction of effective legislation and safety campaigns. However, concerns have been expressed that standards of driving behaviour are declining.
Everyday drivers, like myself, hold the perception that drivers are less safe now than they were twenty years ago. The figures show that the road toll is higher than last year. Twenty years ago WA had the best road safety record, yet now has the worst, based on crash data.
From government to parents to all community members, we need to do something to bring down the numbers of deaths on our roads and to change attitudes and behaviours.
But some issues then arise, how best to assess drivers' attitudes, and how best to use the results of these assessments to modify or change driving behaviours?
A fundamental part of this framework is to create a definition in order to identify good and poor driving. The idea is not new, these ideas were implemented in Australia, but for some reason were not very effective. There is still plenty of room for improvement. We must take into consideration that Australia is a multicultural country and that this may affect driving attitudes.
It has been discovered that learner drivers often do not explore their own attitudes or think about how they could make their behaviour safer, and they rely too much on subjective criteria of where their strengths and weaknesses lie.
A bottom line definition for a multicultural approach to driving involves complex and varied mental processes involving beliefs, feelings and values about an subject which leads to a disposition to behave in a certain way.
This definition highlights the differences between an attitude and other psychological constructs such as personality. These factors are influenced by and grow out of background factors which may include general attitudes, personality traits and experiences amongst others.
The reality is we can't have one road for every driver. Theoretically I may own the space on the road on which my car is travelling but the reality is I must share the road with other drivers who are in the same situation as me.
The concept of SHARING is the aim of this project.
The learning to drive process
Driver education has until now focused on skills, laws and rules and the practical knowledge of the legal responsibilities appropriate for road safety. The focus is on the passing of the driving test with no further development of a comprehensive attitude to sharing the road with others. Driving is a life-long shared activity.
Over the last ten years we have come to realise that police and court convictions, alongside tough legal penalties, have made no significant impact on changing the attitudes of drivers. The focus has been on personal risk and not on the consideration of others who share the road with us.
For example:
I don't drink and drive because of the fear of the booze bus rather than caring for the welfare of others on the road.
I drive at 40 km/hr in a school zone when others flash me with their lights in warning that the police are around rather than be concerned about the safety of children.
What's our aim?
To design a website to support drivers, especially young drivers. Operation and management of this website will be conducted by young drivers who are having difficulty getting employment due to road trauma, especially those confined to a wheelchair.
What's our purpose?
To share experiences with drivers of all ages in order for us all to become dynamic, inspired and better drivers.
What do we want to achieve?
The sharing of good attitudes, in order to create more awareness of our own behaviour toward others.
What is our ultimate goal?
The ultimate goal is for everyone to become a mentor of their own behaviour.
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