Visitor information centres across state enlisted to help stem road toll

By Gabriel Garcia

Jun 1, 2023

Desperate times: Visitor information centres across Victoria will be providing information to tourists on where to take breaks in an effort to prevent driving fatigue. Photo by Megan Fisher

Visitor information centres across Victoria are stepping up to help prevent carnage on Victoria’s roads.

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Partnering with the Transport Accident Commission and the Victoria Tourism Industry Council, visitor centres will be supporting important safe driving messaging as well as acting as road safety hubs.

The TAC and VTIC will be working together for the next two years to try to tackle fatigue-related road trauma, with the TAC’s Pause Stop program running in 15 visitor information centres across the state.

The Pause Stop program is designed to provide road users with resources to help them plan trips to include interesting stops and locations for taking a break.

The new partnership will also see the TAC become the naming rights partner of the Victorian Top Tourism Town Awards.

The awards highlight the importance that tourism has to the survival of towns all around Victoria.

Towns that enter the awards must encourage visitors to take a break to avoid fatigue.

TAC acting chief executive Tony Dudley said partnering with VTIC would hopefully help to reduce the high road toll.

“With fatigue a major contributing factor to road trauma in Victoria, the TAC’s partnership with VTIC is an important platform to engage with people travelling throughout our state on the dangers of drowsy driving and help them get to their destination safely,” Mr Dudley said.

“We know that VTIC has such a great network of visitor information centres and they are the ideal touch point for us to engage with travelling motorists on how to ensure they continue their journey safely.”

VTIC chief executive Felicia Mariani said the partnership would help both regional and rural communities while ensuring tourists were fully informed when travelling on long or unfamiliar roads.

The visitor information centres across Victoria are an ideal place for travellers to stop, revive and learn how they can best engage with towns and centres they will be visiting on their journey.

Submissions for the Top Tourism Town Awards closed in April and the public voting component will take place in June. Winners will be announced at a special ceremony in July.

For more information on Pause Stops and how to avoid driving while fatigued, visit www.tac.vic.gov.au/roadsafety/pausestop