A PETITION calling on the Victorian Government to reduce the minimum probationary drivers licence age has been launched and sponsored by Member for Northern Victoria Gaelle Broad.
Reducing the age from 18 to 17 would make Victoria in line with every other state.
Ms Broad said she had been contacted by young people, parents and grandparents keen to see the probationary driving age reduced.
“I raised the issue in Parliament last year but was told the minister had safety concerns with the idea,” she said.
“As a parent of two P-platers and one L-plater, I agree that safety is crucial, and training is vitally important to ensure our young people are ready for the responsibility of driving solo.
“Any road accident statistic is a bad one, regardless of your age.
“But in Victoria right now, you need to do more training to serve coffee than you do to drive on our roads.
“We require learner drivers to record 120 hours of driving in a logbook, but unless they have someone teaching them properly, at the end of it they may still not know how to park a car.”
Ms Broad urged the Roads Minister to consider the driver training programs used in New South Wales.
If a learner driver completes a one-day safer driving course, they earn 20 hours of credit on their logbooks and 10 hours of professional driving lessons will receive a further 20 hours of credit.
“I have been contacted by people across the state keen to see the law changed in Victoria, particularly in regional areas where there is limited or no public transport available, and not everyone has a parent or carer available to ferry them around,” Ms Broad said.
Ms Broad said some teenagers were avoiding the rules by using a NSW address to get their licence.
“For young people who have done the hours of training and are ready to drive safely on their own, a driver’s licence opens doors to educational and employment opportunities, access to health services, to engage in community events and sports and to help others.”
In 2017, a parliamentary committee inquiry recommended Victoria lower the age to 17.
The Law Institute of Victoria in 2016 said the probationary driving age should be lowered to 17, as it would cut barriers to employment and education faced by young people in rural areas.
The Law Institute said the minimum probationary driving age should be considered in the context of a young person’s need to access education, work and social opportunities, especially in areas poorly served by public transport.
However, the Transport Accident Commission strongly opposed a lowering of the probationary age in its submission.
A Department of Transport and Planning spokesperson said lowering the age would be a “backward step”.
“Given the number of lives saved since the driving age was raised to 18, any move to lower it again would be a backwards step and potentially result in 10 more deaths each year,” the spokesperson said.
“Road crashes are one of the leading causes of death among young people, and drivers on probationary licences have the highest risk of crashing than at any other time while driving.”
Ms Broad is sponsoring the petition in the Legislative Council.
The petition closes on April 30 and can be found at www.parliament.vic.gov.au/get-involved/petitions/reduce-probationary-driving-age/
AUSTRALIAN Driver Trainers Association president John Tserkezidis believes 17 year olds might be “too immature” for lowering the driving age.
“We also have an issue with young people only needing six to 10 hours with a qualified instructor out of the 120 hours’ driving practice required,” he told The Guardian.
“I can understand that the kids will also be doing driving on paddocks and doing the work around the property from a very young age. That will help the car control.
“But it’s still about being mature enough.
“If the government goes ahead with this, the amount of time with a qualified instructor needs to increase.
“We can get them on the good footing and then work with their parents on supervising.”
Mr Tserkezidis said he sympathised with young people struggling with lack of transport options in the regions.
“I came out of the building trade as an apprentice and I fully understand carting your tools around and going to different building sites with no public transport,” he said.
“I think if they meet halfway and look at individual students who are affected by not being able to get to work and maybe start a trial and engage what sort of impact it’s had.
“The government is trying to reduce that rising road toll, especially this year, it’s pretty scary.
“That’s definitely from COVID because a lot of people have not had the time to get the full training.
“I mean, they clock up 120 hours, but is it a good quality 120 hours?”
