An over-representation of light trucks in the highest road toll statistics in Australia for more than 10 years has prompted a national safety review.
In an Australian-first, vehicle safety organisation ANCAP has examined some of Australia’s top-selling light trucks as part of a new initiative to boost safety standards and assist business operators and private consumers make informed purchasing decisions.
ANCAP Chief Executive Officer Carla Hoorweg said 1301 fatalities were recorded on Australian roads last year, the highest road toll since 2012.
Ms Hoorweg said more than 75 percent of serious crashes involving a light truck had resulted in a fatality or serious injury to other road users.
She said while light trucks were increasing in popularity, safety experts believed advancements in safety features and technologies in the light truck segment hadn’t kept pace with other vehicle classes.
“Light trucks, along with other goods vehicles such as commercial vans and medium and heavy trucks, remain over-represented in fatal and serious injury crashes in Australia.
“These vehicles make up less than three percent of all registered vehicles on Australia’s roads, yet they are involved in approximately 15 percent of all fatal crashes.”
Ms Hoorweg said ANCAP’s Light Truck ADAS Safety Comparison aimed to bring greater accountability and safety standards to the light truck segment through a new assessment regime.
She said the comparison had been undertaken to identify a baseline level of safety performance.
“The program is an expansion of ANCAP’s highly trusted and respected safety regime which offers consumers and fleets with free, independent and trusted information to make informed decisions.
“ANCAP has been testing and rating the safety performance of passenger vehicles for over 30 years and this information has led to a dramatic improvement in the safety of these vehicles.”
Ms Hoorweg said light trucks represented an important segment of the vehicle market, responsible for the “last mile” delivery to Australian homes and as the transport vehicle of choice for many small to medium businesses nationwide.
“Compared to other vehicle segments, light trucks offer carrying capacity at a relatively affordable price point, with the ability to be driven on a C Class (car) driver licence.
“These factors and the growing scale of online shopping and delivery demand since the pandemic has led to an increased presence on the roads, with Australian light truck sales increasing by an average of 6.6 percent per year since 2012.”
She said Australia’s three top-selling light trucks, the Isuzu N-Series, Fuso Canter and Hino 300 Series and, together with the highest-selling battery-electric (EV) light truck, the Foton T5, were selected for examination in the inaugural comparison.
See the results on the ANCAP website.
