The problem with trying to 'fix' this 'problem' is that it ignores to fundamentals; that p-platers are young and inexperienced and also tend to travel between 11pm-5am then most other drivers. Hence, there is no surprise that they are proportionally over represented in the death toll. It's only natural for an 18 yr old to do stupid things, and this is something that is going to be near impossible to really change. (perhaps they should ban cars?)
Perhaps it would make more sense to improve our roads; that are worse then Vic and Qld. The state of our roads should be embarrassing to the gov't and it would be nice to have some pollies that would put away the band-aids and actually fix things.
The focus on speed is a band-aid approach. Anyone who drives knows that the emphasis on speed seems to be over-rated, it's fair to say that most drivers speed (evident on any road where the traffic is flowing freely) and in some cases going slower then the speed limit is dangerous... has anyone else been overtaken by a truck on a freeway because they were legally driving 20kmh less then the speed limit? Besides, the emphasis on speed in the cause of crashes comes from the simple logic that if a driver had been travelling more slowly it would have been easier to stop. It's conveniently also easy to measure, determine and police.
But even if a person feels that these measures are good, in some way, as in they make the roads safer, will it really change the P-plate death toll? The answer is probably not. The people who will lose their licenses for going 55 in a 50 zone were not a risk of killing anyone and they will return to the road in 3 months eager to drive and unpractised; effectively they return a worse driver then the 'danger' they were when they slipped over the limit.
And besides, most of the fatal accidents seem to occur on roads not near the city. Most of the big fatality accidents happen on unfamiliar roads in not that powerful cars where people are simply unexperienced in how to drive there. And the really serious incidents; where people are driving over 50kmh above the speed limit will probably still occur; best be hanged for a sheep then a lamb sort of idea.
So all of us honest ones will be stuck in a draconian system aimed at controlling those that won't slow down. P platers will still die and now there will be more p platers driving between 11 and 5. Basically, the gov is trying to legislate to fix a problem, but realistically, a $600 fine is already a good enough deterent for someone not to speed, all the new laws are a waste. And even if some people do slow down, the road toll won't really change much.
