The Black Spot Program is a

road safety Road traffic safety refers to the methods and measures used to prevent road users from being killed or seriously injured. Typical road users include pedestrians, cyclists, motorists, vehicle passengers, horse riders, and passengers of on-road ...

program run by the

Australian Government The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government, is the national government of Australia, a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Like other Westminster-style systems of government, the Australian Government i ...

to fix dangerous roads by treating road locations where a large number of motor vehicle accidents have occurred. The program was first introduced for a three-year period starting in 1990. Funding was stopped in 1993, but the program was re-started in 1996. Several audits and evaluations of the program have been conducted over the years. Program expenditure in 2016–17 was .

Program aims and funding

The Black Spot Program is aimed at reducing road crash injuries and fatalities through targeting the locations where crashes have occurred for treatments. Treatments include introducing roundabouts to black spot intersections, altering traffic flow directions, realigning intersections, and introducing new traffic signals.

History of the program

The Black Spot program was initially established under the Hawke Government as a three-year initiative to run from 1990–91. The Government had plans to spend $110 million on improving safety at more than 1,000 sites, including intersections and bridges, over the three-year period to 30 June 1993. At the time, the program was administered by the

Department of Transport and Communications The Department of Transport and Communications was an Australian government department that existed between July 1987 and December 1993. History The Department of Transport and Communications was one of 16 'super-ministries' announced ...

. The Keating Government did not renew the program in their 1993 Budget, prompting criticism from then Shadow Minister for Transport John Sharp. The program was reintroduced in 1996, following the election of the Howard Government, and a 1995 evaluation of the program by the Bureau of Transport Economics. Administration of the program from 1996 to 1998 was the responsibility of the

Department of Transport and Regional Development The Department of Transport and Regional Development was an Australian government department that existed between March 1996 and October 1998. Scope Information about the department's functions and/or government funding allocation cou ...

, which was succeeded by the

Department of Transport and Regional Services The Department of Transport and Regional Services (DOTARS) was an Australian government department that existed between October 1998 and December 2007. Scope Information about the department's functions and/or government funding allocation could ...

(DOTARS) in October 1998, the

Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government The Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government was an Australian Government department that existed between December 2007 and September 2010. The Department was established following the change of governmen ...

in December 2007, the

Department of Infrastructure and Transport The Department of Infrastructure and Transport was an Australian government department. It was formed in September 2010, following the federal election in August 2010. The department absorbing parts of the Department of Infrastructure, Tr ...

in September 2010, the

Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development The Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development was an Australian Government department that existed between September 2013 and December 2017. Matters dealt with by the department included: infrastructure planning and coordination; tra ...

in September 2013, and the

Department of Infrastructure, Regional Development and Cities The Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Cities was an Australian Public Service department of the Government of Australia that existed between December 2017 and May 2019, charged with the responsibility for infrastr ...

in December 2017.

Audits and evaluations

The first evaluation of the Black Spot program was in 1995, by the Bureau of Transport Economics. The evaluation was based on a sample of 254 projects and found that the program had generated returns of around $4 to the Australian economy for every dollar spent. In 2001, the Bureau released its second evaluation of the program, which found that overall the Black Spot Program had been highly effective in reducing casualty crashes—calculating an urban benefit-cost ratio of over 18, and a regional benefit-cost ration of around 10. When the Australian National Audit Office audited DOTARS' administration of the program in 2006–07, it made nine recommendations, including three addressing governance arrangements and six focused on addressing shortcomings it had identified in program administration. A third evaluation by the Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics in 2012 covered 1599 black spot projects, and found that on average each project was estimated to be saving 1.7 reported crashes.

Annual program expenditure

Annual program expenditure has historically been reported in the administering department's annual report:

References

{{Reflist Road transport in Australia Road safety in Australia