There is less difference in attitudes towards road safety between city and rural residents than might have been expected. When it comes to nominating the one cause most often leading to road crashes, speed dominates the Australian community's thinking. This is double the next most often mentioned cause, which is drink driving. A clear majority also have favourable attitudes towards speed enforcement. While legislation requiring people to carry their licence at all times when driving a motor vehicle is in force only in New South Wales, most drivers throughout the country believe it already exists in their State or Territory.
All age groups give their support, with approval gaining more strength as people get older.
Males are significantly less likely than females to use their front seat belt all the time. The Northern Territory has the lowest rate of seat belt wearing in the front or the back. The following pages describe the research that was carried out for CAS 12 and provide a more detailed analysis of the survey findings. Where appropriate, findings are compared with previous surveys in this series. Further information can be obtained through the Australian Transport Safety Bureau in Canberra.