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Sharp rise in road deaths in Australia prompts calls for safety overhaul
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A frame grab showing the site of a bus crash, where 10 people from a wedding party were killed, in Cessnock, Australia, on June 12.
PHOTO: AFP
SYDNEY – For decades, Australia was known for its world-leading road safety measures, including compulsory seat belts and random alcohol breath testing.
The nation’s annual death toll on its roads fell from a record high of 3,798 in 1970 – the year in which the state of Victoria became the first jurisdiction in the world to make seat belts mandatory – to 1,094 in 2020. This marked a drop from 30 deaths per 100,000 people to 4.3.
