How to stop the road rage

The Australian Caravan Club has stepped up its campaign to develop a ‘road sharing’ policy with truckies, calling for a national summit to help reduce road rage incidents between truckies and vanners on Australia’s increasingly crowded highways.

Australian Caravan Club (ACC) chairman Craig Humphrey said caravan clubs and trucking organisations were all working hard running individual campaigns to educate both truckies and vanners, but that a summit could have the effect of pooling ideas together, combining resources, and seeing a targeted, unified and effective campaign delivered to a broader audience.

“All affected stakeholder groups need to collaborate together, be working off the same page and at the same time, be delivering the same message,” Humphrey said.  “At the moment we are seeing several stakeholders including our own club using individual resources, at times with slightly different messages, that are not reaching the full targeted audiences.”

The ACC has previously had discussions with major trucking body, the National Road Transport Association, about developing a ‘Share the Road’ code of conduct, which might address issues like unsafe overtaking, overcrowded rest stops, and the need for communication via indicator lights and UHF radios previously outlined by road safety advocates.

RV road rage on the rise

With more caravans and trucks travelling major highways, road rage incidents between transport drivers and RV travellers are reportedly on the increase with a recent ABC report highlighting rising tensions between 'vanners and truckies, particularly during the peak, grey nomad winter migration north.

Campervan and Motorhome Club of Australia chief Richard Barwick told the ABC that there “are some horrific stories that have come across our desk”.

"Members have been caught up with a truck right behind them, very, very close, then feels anxious and when trying to get off the road quickly, goes too far and has driven himself into a culvert or a ditch, causing a major accident," he said.

Barwick said the CMCA was also “engaging with the major trucking organisations to discuss how can we have safer travel patterns and ensure we're talking about the issues that are arising,". Australia's largest and most influential RV club was also working on anti road rage strategies including a driver education campaign, and seeking more government investment in the area.

Ban caravans from truck stops

Meanwhile, the Australian Trucking Association (ATA) recently called for major changes to the guidelines for building truck rest areas after a recent government-funded Austroads report said that access to toilets, lighting and water was ‘desirable’ and not a necessity.

“Our roads and rest areas are a driver’s workplace and we have little chance of resolving fatigue if drivers are not provided with basic human rights to get the job done,” ATA CEO Ben Maguire said.

In its response to the report, the ATA made a number of recommendations including that Governments should provide truck rest areas every 20km, allowing drivers to comply with work diary rules; and that there should be no general and caravan parking in the truck section of any rest area, and this must be enforced.

On a more positive note, Humphreys applauded the safety campaign being run by logistics company Centurion in Western Australia, where the ACC’s Annual General Meeting and National Muster will be held in October this year.

A recent survey of Centurion drivers showed more than 80 per cent had witnessed or experienced a close call with a caravan in the past two years, and Centurion has distributed 200,000 brochures on safe driving and highway etiquette to roadhouses and caravan parks.

“Our Club is currently undergoing a process of meeting and discussion with other RV Clubs and a truck driver campaign advocate on this very issue,” Humphrey said.

“The sooner (a collaborative strategy) can be done, the safer the roads will be for both truckies and vanners,” said.

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