Safer Brisbane streets as road users slow for ‘SAM’

Lord Mayor Graham Quirk today revealed that two in every five lead-footed motorists are driving safer in response to Brisbane City Council’s citywide speed awareness campaign.

Cr Quirk said 98 million road users passed Council’s 106 speed awareness monitors last financial year, with speeding motorists reducing their speed by an average of eight kilometres per hour as they approach the ‘Slow for SAM’ signs.

“Council is investing $2 billion towards 1,000 road improvement projects and is committed to getting residents home quicker and safer,” Cr Quirk said.

“Part of our commitment to safer suburban streets is the ‘Slow for SAM’ campaign which raises driver awareness to slow down speeding vehicles.

“Results taken over the past financial year show more than 80 per cent of motorists are doing the right thing, however a small number of people are compromising the safety of all road users, including pedestrians and cyclists.

“Data still shows that more than 18 million drivers are hooning past ‘SAM’ above the speed limit, but the good news is two in every five of those motorists reduced their speed below the limit after they were alerted by our flashing signs.”

Cr Quirk said Council continued to roll out more signs every year with 106 monitors currently installed and more than 30 monitors will be rolled out over the coming year.

“Council is continuing to invest in raising speed awareness and is investing a further $1 million this financial year to rotate the signs through more speeding hotspots,” he said.

“Each high-impact sign stays in place for at least one month to allow the speed warning signs to raise driver awareness before they are rotated to other speeding hotspots.”

Cr Quirk said Council continued to look at new ways to improve road safety, which is why he recently launched a citywide pedestrian safety review.

“Pedestrians, motorists, public transport users and cyclists all have valuable knowledge on where there are safety issues on Brisbane roads, which is why I am asking for residents to provide data about pedestrian safety hotspots,” he said.

“Already more than 2,600 people have used their personal experiences on our roads to help Council pinpoint locations where improvements can be made, with more than two weeks of the Move Safe Brisbane survey still to go.”

Residents can contribute to the pedestrian safety map until August 28 at www.yoursay.brisbane.qld.gov.au/movesafe For more information about Council’s ‘Slow for SAM’ campaign, visit www.brisbane.qld.gov.au or call Council on (07) 3403 8888.