Over $1.1 billion is being invested in road safety infrastructure and to strengthen enforcement efforts, including $350 million in new initiatives.
Previous funding, including the Federal Blackspot Program and Safe Local Roads and Streets Program, is included in the announcement.
The updated plan aims to prevent serious crashes, and will finance initiatives such as road safety barriers at high-risk locations on rural roads.
Safety infrastructure at priority rural intersections, including splitter islands and side road activated speeds, will be installed under the fund.
Local speed zone and limit changes are flagged under the plan, pending feedback from councils and their communities.
Victoria Police will increase road policing in rural areas through intelligence-led policing to enforce drink and drug driving laws, and conduct visible patrols as deterrence.
The Distracted Driving and Seatbelt Camera Program will be extended, detecting mobile device use and non-compliance with seatbelt laws.
Various other priorities have been set, with speeding, driving while fatigued and reducing the number of less safe older cars also targeted by the plan.
Minister for Roads and Road Safety Melissa Horne said that while road trauma was a complex issue, the contributing factors were not new.
“By investing in safer infrastructure and targeting high-risk behaviours, this plan builds on our record investment in road safety,” Ms Horne said.
The plan aims to save lives, reduce injuries and prevent crashes before they happen, she said.
More specifically, the Road Safety Action Plan aims to halve the number of deaths on Victoria’s roads by 2030 and to embed a culture of road safety across the state.
As of Sunday, December 29, 280 lives had been lost on Victoria’s roads in 2024, with 148 in rural areas, according to the Transport Accident Commission.
Last year, 173 lives were lost on rural Victorian roads, and 294 across the state, which was the highest figure recorded since 2008.
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