Benchmarking the Performance of the National Road Safety Strategy
September Quarter 2024

In the 12 months to 30 September, 1,288 people died on Australian roads. That’s 68 more than in the previous corresponding period – a rise of 5.6 per cent.

The Bureau of Infrastructure and Transport Research Economics produces road death figures every month.

Of the 41 monthly reports since May 2021, only one has reported a decline in road deaths relative to the preceding 12-month period.

The latest numbers continue this tragic rise in fatalities.

The figures reveal 12-monthly increases in road deaths in NSW (up 6.5 per cent), Victoria (8.5 per cent), Western Australia (7.1 per cent) and Tasmania (5.9 per cent). The Northern Territory saw a 130.8 per cent surge in crash fatalities over the period.

Road deaths declined in South Australia (down 9.8 per cent), Queensland (-4.2 per cent) and the ACT (-22.2 per cent). But even these jurisdictions are still significantly off-track from achieving progress towards the NRSS targets because of previous increases.

Signed by all Australian governments, the National Road Safety Strategy 2021-30 (NRSS) was designed to halve road deaths through the decade to 2030. Yet as of the end of September 2024, the country’s 12-month road toll is 17.4 per cent higher than when the Strategy commenced.