RoadSafe North East has secured approximately $70,000 in funding through the Victorian Government’s Community Road Safety Grants program, paving the way for a suite of targeted initiatives aimed at reducing road trauma across the region.

The grant will support five key program areas: older motorcycle rider safety, off-road motorcycle safety, young driver education, safe cycling, and distraction awareness.

Each initiative is designed to promote behavioural change among road users, with a strong focus on vulnerable groups.

Executive officer Aaron Scales said the funding will allow RoadSafe North East to deliver programs tailored to the needs of local communities.

“All of the programs are designed around behaviour change,” he said.

“For example, our distraction program focuses on mobile phone use and other hazards, using variable messaging signs across the region to deliver impactful safety messages.”

The motorcycle safety initiative will include on-road training sessions for riders over 40, a group identified as high-risk due to returning to riding after long breaks.

“They’re often returning riders who may not have the skills they once did,” Mr Scales said.

In Wangaratta specifically, the safe cycling component will be prominent, featuring ride-to-work days and a bike education program delivered in local primary schools by educator Glenn Clarke.

The programs will run over the next eight to nine months, aligning with the current financial year.

Mr Scales said the delay in funding had left the organisation unable to deliver programs for three months, impacting community engagement.

“While we continued in a minimal capacity, we just didn’t have the money to do it properly,” he said.

RoadSafe North East has a long-standing record of reducing fatalities in the region, and Mr Scales said he is confident the new funding will have a tangible impact.

“We’ve been running for over 15 years and have a proven track record of behaviour change and reducing road trauma in North East Victoria," he said.

The grants are part of the Victorian government’s broader push to support schools, councils, and not-for-profits in delivering life-saving road safety education.

Member for Northern Victoria, Jaclyn Symes, said these important grants deliver life-saving messages right across our state.

"They give schools and community groups the chance to create local solutions to local road safety concerns," she said.