Federal Budget: Funding for Black Spot Program cut by 20 per cent

The Australian Government has announced it will reduce funding for its Black Spot Program by as much as 20 per cent by 2026.

In the Federal Budget delivered last night, it was revealed funding will gradually be decreased – shrinking investment by six per cent in the first financial year.

First introduced in 1990, the program is meant to identify and change black spots – the name given to roads where accidents occur frequently – to make them safer for road users.

“Any reduction in road safety funding is a massive concern,” Russell White, CEO of the Australian Road Safety Foundation, told Wheels.

“I think when road trauma’s so high on the list of causes for people losing their lives or being injured, any reduction in terms of that sort of infrastructure – or any other road safety activity – is a massive concern."

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The Budget announcement comes just one day after a wide-ranging report into road safety was tabled in Parliament showing regional roads have an increased risk of a motor vehicle accident compared with metropolitan roads.

“Sometimes there does appear to be that disconnect,” White said.

“[Motor vehicle accidents] are the number one killer of kids aged between one and 14, second only to youth suicide in the 14 to 25 age bracket… it’s the number one thing that’s causing death and injury in the workplace.

“So I think when we’re looking at road safety, it’s not just road infrastructure, it’s also looking at how you’re investing in developing road users, as well as the infrastructure that goes with that."

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Bernadette Nugent, CEO of Road Trauma Support Services Victoria, also expressed concern, telling Wheels it “is disappointing that the Government plans to reduce funding for Black Spot projects”.

Nugent also said not all the responsibility lies on the condition of the road, adding: “As a community, we need to continue to take individual responsibility for our driving behaviour and keeping ourselves and other road users safe”.

However, while the Federal Government is reducing Black Spot Program funding, it is increasing its investment in road infrastructure each financial year to 2025, before it almost halves for 2025-26.

“New funding in this year’s Budget will deliver more road safety projects in regional areas, where the road fatality rate is disproportionately 10 deaths per 100,000 people compared to two deaths per 100,000 in metropolitan areas,” the Government said in a statement.

The money will be used to improve safety at railway crossings in regional areas, sealing 1000 kilometres of road in the Outback, and targeting “nationally significant projects that will improve the efficiency and safety of Australia’s road network”.

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“Australia has failed to reach its road safety reduction targets over the past five years – even during COVID-19, we’ve actually seen significant increases in the amount of people losing their lives on Australian roads,” Russell White said following the Budget announcement.

“And whilst we’ve always had great progress in terms of always trying to address areas like black spots, it’s clear that if we’re missing our targets, then reducing funding is not the answer, we actually should be providing more to it.”

Wheels has approached the Federal Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development for comment.