Reframing the Road:
A Holistic Take on Driver Safety Training
WORDS BY ANTONINA JOSON
Driver safety training may seem like just another item on a list of things to do for businesses, but this approach isn’ t capturing the whole picture. In Australia, vehicle incidents are the leading cause of the death among children aged 1 to 14 years old and the highest safety risk in the workplace.
In the fleet industry, road safety is a priority for everyone. The blame for safety risks and road accidents can’ t just be pinned on one department or person. This view on road safety in the fleets starts with company culture. When an organisation’ s culture promotes and prioritises road safety for all stakeholders, it becomes an integral part of its operations. Completing training, webinars, and townhall meetings may seem like another task to accomplish, but they’ re integral to how a company manages its culture around safety.
In his keynote speech at the 2025 Fleet Education and Leadership Summit, Russell White, Managing Director of Driver Safety Australia, spoke about a new perspective on driver safety training. Whereas some organisations may view driver training as just another requirement, Russell presents the importance reframing it as a regular necessity and an integral part to a company’ s commitment to safety.
It Starts with Culture
A key aspect of the session was acknowledging that road safety should not be compartmentalised. The task of prioritising road safety isn’ t just left to one department but should be upheld throughout an entire organisation.
There’ s no“ silver bullet” or one-quick-fix for this predicament, but it can be jumpstarted by a shift in perspective. According to Russell, a shift in perspective of road safety begins with company culture and that culture is led by management.“ It takes corporate leadership. It takes community leadership,” he said.
“ We’ ve been heavy on the infrastructure, [...] engineering, [...] enforcement side. We need to start changing the way we view it,” Russell added.
This emphasis on safety in a workplace doesn’ t just affect the whole organisation but extends to the entire community. Work philosophies that develop even at a fleet level can spread and evolve, benefiting all stakeholders.
28 ISSUE 54 AUGUST 2025 / WWW. AFMA. ORG. AU