Road safety
From 2014 to 2016 there were 239 road crashes in Boroondara of which 232 involved serious injuries, and another seven which involved fatalities (Table 1).
Pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists form part of a group known as 'vulnerable road users' because they lack external protection in the event of a crash.
Serious injury or fatal crashes
Table 1: Number of serious injury or fatal crashes, City of Boroondara, 2014 to 2016
|
Severity |
2014 |
2015 |
2016 |
Grand Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Fatal crashes |
2 |
2 |
3 |
7 |
|
Serious injury crashes |
94 |
81 |
57 |
232 |
|
Grand Total |
96 |
83 |
60 |
239 |
Reported injuries by road user type
Figure 1 presents the number of people severely or fatally injured in crashes, by road user type, in the City of Boroondara from 2014 to 2016.
It shows that collision with a vehicle was the main accident type (42% or 100 incidents) in Boroondara, followed by striking pedestrians (21% or 49 incidents) and motorcyclists (18% or 42 incidents).
The chart shows no clear trend in the total number of severe or fatal injuries sustained by passengers, pedestrians, and motorcyclists and pillions, but the number of severely and fatally injured bicyclists dropped by 50% between 2015 and 2016 (from 16 to 8).
For more information see VicRoads' CrashStats tool.
Figure 1: Number of reported injuries by road user type categories, City of Boroondara, 2014 to 2016 (source: Vic Road Crash Statistics).
Injuries from falls
Boroondara’s population is ageing. Over the next ten years (2018 to 2028) the Boroondara population is forecast to increase by 8%.
The Boroondara population aged 60 years and over is forecast to grow by 18% over the same period. Falls are a significant risk for older people which can impact on loss of independence and mortality.
Between 2012-13 and 2014-15, 1,838 Boroondara residents aged over 60 years presented at an emergency department in a Victorian public hospital for an injury caused by a fall (Inner East Primary Care Partnership, 2017). Figure 2 shows that the risk of emergency department presentations due to falls increases with age.
Presentations to emergency
Figure 2 presents the estimated annual rate (per 1,000 population) of presentations to emergency departments for falls, by age group, among Boroondara residents between 2012-13 and 2014-15.
It shows a substantial increase in the rate of emergency department presentations with increasing age.
Figure 2: Estimated annual rate (per 1,000 population) of presentations to emergency for falls by age group, Boroondara. 2012-13 to 2014-15 (source: Inner East Primary Care Partnership, 2017)