From this month, all speeding and red light offenders in Victoria will receive a personal letter written and signed by an SES first responder, reflecting on his first-hand experience with road trauma.
And the campaign will ask the offender, through a QR code on the letter, to make a pledge to drive safely, by signing their name and clicking a 'commit' button.
It's the most direct to consumer road safety campaign yet launched in Australia and arrives as both NSW and Victoria record an horrific 12 months of road trauma.
In the 12 months to the end of January this year, road deaths in Victoria have risen 14.8 per cent compared with the same period in the previous 12 months.
In NSW road deaths increased 30.8 per cent and in South Australia, 39.7 per cent.
Road deaths across the country have increased by 5.4 per cent over the same period.
This comes at a time when the 2021-2030 National Road Safety Strategy - a policy document agreed to by all states and territories - has a target of a 50 per cent reduction in road deaths by 2030.
The Victorian Traffic Accident Commission's "Dear Driver" campaign required cutting through significant red tape within government to progress, including collaboration with the Fines and Enforcement Services, Department of Justice and Community Safety and Victoria Police.
It uses the traffic infringement notices to educate offenders through real-life stories of survivors and a first-responder.
The TAC has always been unashamedly bold and progressive with its road safety messaging, most of which have been controversial, uncomfortable to watch, powerful and highly confronting.
The advertisements show many awful crash scenes, death and gore.
Back in late 1989, it launched its first series of advertisements and recently released a 5min22sec compilation of those advertisements. The soundtrack choice of REM's 'Everybody Hurts' added to the visual power of the messaging.
"Through empathy and real-life stories, we hope to ignite a change in behaviour and pave the way to safer roads.
TAC's Chief executive Tracey Slatter said that the idea was to show that road safety was more than rules and penalties, "it's about people's lives".
"By connecting with offenders on an emotional level, we hope to bring about a cultural shift towards safer decision making on our roads," she said.
"Through empathy and real-life stories, we hope to ignite a change in behaviour and pave the way to safer roads."
