There something dangerous and deadly lurking in Victoria that no one wants to discuss

May 24, 2026 — 5:00am

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There is something dangerous and deadly lurking in Victoria which nobody in power seems to want to discuss or consider beyond well-meaning platitudes.

It’s the road toll. The strategy to cut it has failed and although it no longer seems fit for purpose nobody is publicly talking about how to rebuild it.

Despite the quite reasonable political obsession with street crime, corruption and debt, it is time to bring road trauma back as a high-profile public issue and redesign a failing strategy.

Fresh ideas are urgently needed. And the public must be involved.

To begin, a specific problem may be emerging with drivers under 30. The figures are small, and will be erratic, but as of midnight, May 19, Transport Accident Commission figures for the year show death rates for those under 30 have increased but those for over-30s have dropped.

And this number should be occupying the minds of anybody with a heart: there has been a 133 per cent increase in deaths of children between 5 and 15 so far this year.

Seven children in that age group have died, compared to three in the same period the year before and eight for all of last year. The five-year average is two.

The problem was tragically highlighted last week after a 14-year-old boy travelling in a stolen ute with three teenage family members died when the vehicle crashed into a tree near Mildura.

Is this a trend? It’s too early to tell. But it’s the job of government........

© The Age