Planning for Zero Capability Building – Train to Implement Zero Pathways
1. The importance of training for Planning for Zero Framework Implementation
Traditionally, road safety strategy development in Australia and New Zealand has been led by government transport agencies, with involvement from key delivery partners. However, leading jurisdictions have shifted to a model that includes more private sector involvement, greater transparency, and a focus on performance indicators. To truly implement effective Pathways to Zero, training will be needed to enhance the skills of road safety professionals and to educate stakeholders about the Safe System approach and the benefits of Vision Zero.
2. Identify stakeholders that require training
Key stakeholders involved in Pathways to Zero across the Australian Government, New Zealand, Australia’s states and territories, and local governments have been identified and mapped to clarify who needs to be trained, their level of influence or involvement, and how training frameworks can be tailored accordingly. This enables key stakeholders that would need to be trained to ensure the success of the implementation of Pathways to Zero to be identified, their level of influence or involvement to be understood, and appropriate training frameworks to be developed.
A Stakeholder Value Map, in Table 2.1, provides a visual representation of the key stakeholders and the value proposition that a concept offers to them, in this instance, the value of training to actively involve them in planning and implementation of Pathways to Zero.
Stakeholders outside of the traditional road safety strategy planning and development sphere have been considered and are included in the Stakeholder Value Map because a coordinated and collaborative approach is required to achieve Vision Zero. Reasons for including these stakeholders are well explained in the Austroads Guide to Road Safety Part 1 (Austroads 2021):
- They have closely related goals, some of which may overlap with the objectives of the road safety strategy (e.g. both health and police have a commitment to reducing traffic injuries).
- They have primary responsibility for activities, which are critical for road safety outcomes (e.g. traffic law enforcement, trauma care and workplace safety policies).
- They have information and insights not generally available to the lead agency (e.g. health sector’s understanding of contemporary drug issues).
- They have the capacity to deliver road safety interventions (e.g. motoring organisations, insurers).
- Involving other key stakeholders in the planning process encourages a sense of ownership and commitment to the strategy.
The Safe System approach requires inputs from a wider range of organisations than just road or traffic agencies.
Table 2.1 Stakeholders requiring training to implement Pathways to Zero
| Key function | Responsible | Consulted | Informed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Strategy & Action Planning |
|
|
|
| Support |
|
|
|
| Implementation & Delivery |
|
|
|
| Decision Making |
|
|
|
3. Develop and plan training using the training curriculum framework
A training curriculum framework has been developed to support jurisdictions with the technical training needed to support Pathways to Zero.
Four key training elements need to be considered (see Appendix F in Austroads Report AP-R743-25: ‘Charting a Path to Eliminating Road Death and Serious Injury Stream 2: Developing Pathways to Zero and Comprehensive Support Materials’):
- Road safety fundamentals, which provide the building blocks for Pathways to Zero by introducing key concepts and principles.
- Road safety strategy, which focuses on the training required to plan, implement and monitor effective road safety strategies.
- Road safety strategy supporting tools and techniques, which are the road safety tools and techniques that are available, and can be used to support road safety strategies.
- Road safety strategy education and resources, including establishing a single source of truth referred to as the road safety toolkit, to house the guidance developed by this and future projects, establishing Communities of Practice, and providing evidence, myth-busting and case studies highlighted as being necessary through stakeholder engagement. This is critical to providing key stakeholders with consistent evidence-based information. Smaller jurisdictions and local government can leverage best practice examples from larger jurisdictions with more resources, and bipartisan support for road safety through ensuring the information presented is impartial and evidence-based.
3.1 Catalogue of road safety training opportunities
An industry scan was undertaken of existing road safety training courses available across Australia and New Zealand, and considered courses offered by 2 international bodies, the International Road Federation (IRF) and International Road Assessment Program (iRAP). It found 60+ road safety-related courses that are currently available or offered recently and turned them into a catalogue of road safety training opportunities. This catalogue presents the list of these 60+ training courses, serving as a practical resource for professionals involved in road safety and transport, particularly those in local governments and smaller jurisdictions seeking scalable and evidence-based ways to build capability.
3.2 Implementing training – case study examples
Five case studies are highlighted below that demonstrate how jurisdictions are currently implementing training to improve road safety outcomes. Where possible, it is recommended that jurisdictions avoid reinventing training and use existing training.
In Western Australia, the Western Australian Local Government Association (WALGA) invites local government officers and elected officials to attend a 3-day Local Government Road Safety Vanguards program to learn about modern road safety practices and influencing decision-making to reduce and prevent road deaths and serious injuries. These workshops are free to attend and are held across the state. The program aims to provide participants with practical tools to improve road safety, gain knowledge about new approaches and how to use this information to bring about change in their community.
In Queensland, Transport and Main Roads (TMR) has developed a Road Safety Foundations e-Learning course to provide TMR staff with a fundamental understanding of the Safe System approach. This online training, which is completed by thousands of employees each year as part of the onboarding process, ensures that all TMR staff, irrespective of their roles, understand Safe System fundamentals and can contribute to improving safety across the transport system. The course also provides links between the Safe System approach, TMR's Road Safety Policy, and the commitment to achieving the Queensland Government's goal of Vision Zero.
After completing the course, participants are expected to adopt the Safe System approach and apply Safe System principles, processes and practices across the transport system.
In Victoria, Transport for Victoria has developed a suite of training modules designed to provide Safe System learning at universities. The Safe System for Universities (SS4U) curriculum is a suite of free resources designed for university educators to prepare their undergraduate engineering students for the industry, equipping them with best practice knowledge for designing safer roads for all users.
The resources are aligned to Engineers Australia Stage One competencies, and include ‘plug and play’ lecture and tutorial materials, including prepared assessment questions.
The Transport Accident Commission has developed a Welcome to Destination 2050: Victorian Road Safety module, designed to help people discover the ways they can minimise risk and support the achievement of Vision Zero. The course explores how roads, vehicles, speeds and people can work together to improve road safety.
Organisations, community groups and individuals are encouraged to undertake the module, which can be downloaded for use on company learning management system platforms.
The Australian College of Road Safety (ACRS) has established a Local Government Network (LGN), comprised of ACRS members who focus on road safety at the local government level. The LGN provides opportunities to share projects and learnings between councils, discuss what works and does not work in the local government context and connect with road safety professionals, practitioners and stakeholders.
Members supporting the road safety work of local governments include local government road safety practitioners, as well as peak insurance bodies, universities, federal and state government road safety and transport agencies, road owners, emergency service providers, research organisations, road safety equipment providers, transport planning, engineering, technology, and logistics organisations.
4. Training needs
The training needs required to support implementation of Pathways to Zero were analysed, and a set of priority capability needs was identified across the road safety system. These needs vary by stakeholder group, reflecting their different roles in strategy, decision-making, delivery, support and oversight. The assessment showed that capability building is required not only for technical road safety practitioners, but also for decision-makers, partner agencies, local governments and other stakeholders whose actions influence road safety outcomes.
Local governments are critical to achieving the 2030 and 2050 road safety targets in Australia and New Zealand. It is well recognised that improved road safety outcomes will depend in part on strengthening capability and capacity across this sector. However, the need for training is broader than local government alone and extends across national, state, territory and local institutions, as well as partner organisations that contribute to the planning, funding, delivery and evaluation of road safety action.
The needs assessment highlighted several recurring capability gaps. These include:
- foundational understanding of the Safe System and Planning for Zero Framework
- the ability to develop and implement Zero Pathways
- capability in stakeholder engagement, communications and collaboration
- stronger skills in data, monitoring and evaluation
- greater understanding of institutional road safety management.
The assessment also highlighted the importance of ongoing peer learning, case study sharing and communities of practice to support implementation, particularly for smaller jurisdictions and local governments.
A national approach should therefore seek to:
- integrate requirements, learnings and case studies from all levels of government into capability-building efforts, so that training supports an integrated rather than siloed approach
- ensure training and supporting resources are accessible, affordable and scalable, particularly for smaller jurisdictions and local governments
- tailor training to the needs of different audiences, from general awareness and onboarding through to intermediate and advanced technical capability
- complement formal training with supporting guidance, worked examples, case studies and communities of practice.
Table 4.1 summarises the priority training needs identified through the assessment, the main audiences for each need, and the purpose of capability uplift in each area.
Table 4.1 Training needs assessment – prioritised areas
Training need | Primary audiences | Why this capability is needed | Indicative focus |
|---|---|---|---|
Foundations of road safety and Safe System | New staff across government agencies, partner organisations, local governments, and non-technical stakeholders | To build a shared baseline understanding of road safety, Safe System principles and each stakeholder’s role in improving safety outcomes | Core concepts, Safe System principles, shared responsibility with differentiated roles, practical relevance to day-to-day work |
Road safety strategy and Planning for Zero Framework | Policy, strategy, planning and program staff in lead agencies, partner agencies and local government | To strengthen understanding of how effective road safety strategies are developed, implemented and monitored, and how the Planning for Zero Framework can be applied | Strategy fundamentals, Planning for Zero Framework, partnerships, consultation, implementation logic |
Zero Pathway development and application | Technical road safety professionals, analysts, planners, evaluators and relevant consultants | To build the technical capability required to assess current conditions, identify end states, develop pathways, prioritise interventions and monitor progress | SSES, residual risk, pathway development, prioritisation, monitoring, case applications |
Communications and engagement | Road safety practitioners, communications teams, engagement specialists, program leads and local government officers | To improve the ability to build understanding, support and agency among stakeholders and communities for Zero Pathways and road safety action | Stakeholder analysis, engagement planning, message development, tactical engagement, practical application |
Collaboration and change management | Senior practitioners, program managers, leaders, partner agencies and cross-sector stakeholders | To strengthen the ability to lead organisational and cross-sector change, manage resistance, and build alignment and support for implementation | Change management, leadership, collaboration, overcoming resistance, sustaining change |
Data, analysis and monitoring | Analysts, planners, evaluators, policy teams and technical practitioners | To improve the use of data to understand current safety performance, inform decisions, set targets, and monitor and evaluate progress | Data sources, analysis, monitoring, reporting, performance tracking, emerging datasets |
Institutional road safety management | Technical professionals, managers, policy staff and partner agencies | To improve understanding of the institutional functions, governance settings and management arrangements needed to support Pathways to Zero | Institutional management, roles and responsibilities, interventions, results focus, accountability |
Communities of practice and peer learning | Practitioners across all levels of government, partner agencies and interested stakeholders | To provide an ongoing mechanism for capability uplift, collaboration and sharing of evidence, practice examples and lessons learned | Knowledge sharing, peer exchange, best practice examples, case studies, ongoing learning |
