The Road Attitudes and Action Planning (RAAP) is a free road safety awareness and education program delivered in Queensland schools, appropriate for Year 11 and 12 students. The program is delivered by firefighters who have extensive experience responding to road crashes. Our crews respond to more than 22,000 road traffic crashes across Queensland each year.
Our instructors are all operational firefighters, who bring the credibility of someone who has been exposed to the consequences of road crashes.
RAAP is a multimedia presentation designed as a preventative strategy to provide information to young people about road safety, so that they can make an informed decision to mitigate risks and consequences by planning ahead.
Purpose
The presentation is educational, designed to:
- Use the trusted status of firefighters in the community to provide young people with information so they can make informed decisions.
- Reduce the number of injuries and deaths in road crashes in the 17-24 age groups which is over-represented in the statistics.
Objectives
The presentation’s objectives are to educate the audience so they understand the following;
- that an increased level of risk exists when people are conducting driving activities involving the Fatal 5 being Speeding; Seatbelt;, Inattention; Fatigue; Alcohol and other substances.
- That consequences are the inevitable result of their choices and actions
- That by planning ahead whether being a driver or passenger, poor choices can be avoided.
The RAAP presentation addresses the contributing factors putting young drivers at such a high risk including and not limited to:
- Less developed visual and perceptual skills
- Inability to accurately identify and respond to risks and/or hazards when driving
- Overconfidence
- Inattention caused by inexperience coping with distractions while driving
- Tendency to drive at high risk times (e.g. at night with a number of other young people in the car)
- Alcohol, illicit substances, prescription medication or a combination of these
- Deliberate risk taking (e.g. high speed driving and/or tailgating)