Young drivers face serious road safety issues. To address these, Victoria has developed initiatives with a focus on increasing learner driver experience, developing educational resources and improving licence testing and penalties.

Issues
Young drivers are still over-represented in fatalities and crashes. The research shows that the main safety issues for young drivers are:

• inexperience
• youth and being young
• dealing with challenging driving conditions – late night driving and multiple passengers
• drink driving and drug driving
• driving while fatigued
• mobile phone use
• disobeying road rules, particularly speeding, tailgating and giving way.

Developing safety in young drivers
Initiatives and programs in Victoria focus on:

• encouraging learner driver experience, with an emphasis on 120 hours driving practice
• school and community education programs
• licence tests
• licence restrictions that minimise high risk driving (high powered vehicle restriction and zero BAC restriction)
• penalties and incentives to encourage safer driving

 
Victoria is introducing a new Graduated Licensing System to help to protect young and inexperienced drivers through their first years of solo driving when they are at most risk. Key features of the new licensing system include:

• a minimum 12 month learner permit period
• compulsory 120 hours of supervised driving experience
• a new P1( one year) and P2 ( three year) probationary licence system. 

Increasing learner driver experience
The need to increase learner driver experience is promoted through:

• L Site - an interactive website used by 30,000 learner drivers each year.
• Getting There: From Ls to Ps - a free step-by-step guide for learner drivers and supervising drivers, focusing on gaining extensive on road experience.
• Keys Please - free, two hour forum, attended by 21,000 young people and their parents each year.
• Supervised driving programs for disadvantaged young people are being trialled – Drive 120 operates in Sunbury and a new pilot is planned in Frankston/Mornington Peninsula.
• Fit to Drive – A community road safety program being held in Frankston/Mornington Peninsula to encourage 120 hours driving practice.
• Significant promotion of 120 hours, and the DriveSmart CD ROM, through the Transport Accident Commission (TAC).

Education resources and programs
VicRoads, TAC, Victoria Police and RACV provide a range of educational resources and programs from Prep to Year 12:

• Innovative resources, including VicRoads Reducing the Toll group discussion program, are used in schools and community programs.
• TAC’s Muck Up Day and RACV’s Transmission program target late secondary school years, in addition to other resources/programs which target risk taking.
• Short films focusing on youth and road trauma directed by young film makers are screened in cinemas. 
• Enhancing the safety of young drivers - a resource for communities to help improve the safety of young people.
• Road Safety Education

Licence tests and penalties
Victoria has several initiatives around testing and penalties:

• New learner and hazard perception licence tests have been implemented.
• Full Practice Learner permit test and sample tests are available.
• A lower demerit point limit for L & P drivers provides an incentive for new drivers to drive safely or face risking losing their licence or permit.
• A graduated licensing structure that allows drivers to move to less restrictive conditions as their experience increases. This supports the need for a minimum120 hours of practice and keeping new drivers out of high risk situations while consolidating skills in lower risk situations.