The number of road deaths in some parts of Australia are rated as some of the worst in the developed world, however, other parts are considered to be the lowest in any of these countries.
There are different measurements of these fatalities, and must be viewed in relation to your own opinions.
- Road deaths per 100,000 people
- Road deaths per 100,000 kilometres travelled
The second of these figures shows a clearer picture of relevance compared to actual use of the road, rather than the numbers of people in a country, who may or may not actually use the roads. There are more cars on the road in Australia, per head of population, than in the UK, and consequently a higher mileage is covered, and a higher death toll.
The following figures showing the number of Road Fatalities per 100,000 population of each country listed, with separate figures for each State of Australia.
| Road deaths per 100,000 people | |
| 2007 | Country |
| 4.1 | Australian Capital Territory |
| 4.3 | Netherlands |
| 4.9 | Iceland |
| 5.0 | Great Britain |
| 5.0 | Norway |
| 5.1 | Switzerland |
| 5.2 | Japan |
| 5.2 | Sweden |
| 5.5 | Israel |
| 6.0 | Germany |
| 6.3 | New South Wales |
| 6.4 | Northern Ireland |
| 6.4 | Victoria |
| 7.2 | Finland |
| 7.4 | Denmark |
| 7.5 | France |
| 7.6 | Australia |
| 7.8 | Ireland |
| 7.8 | South Australia |
| 8.3 | Austria |
| 8.6 | Queensland |
| 8.6 | Spain |
| 8.7 | Italy |
| 9.0 | Luxemburg |
| 9.1 | Tasmania |
| 9.2 | Portugal |
| 10.0 | New Zealand |
| 10.1 | Belgium |
| 11.2 | Western Australia |
| 11.6 | Slovakia |
| 11.9 | Czech Republic |
| 12.2 | Hungary |
| 12.7 | South Korea |
| 13.6 | USA |
| 14.6 | Slovenia |
| 14.7 | Poland |
| 27.0 | Northern Territory |
It can be seen that an Australian State is at both the Top of the list and the Bottom. The Northern Territory has an abysmal record in this respect, with 27 road deaths per 100,000 population. However, the Australian Capital Territory, which is mainly Canberra, has an enviable record of only 4.1 road deaths per 100,000 population.
The actual number of Deaths on each Countries roads are shown below, for Great Britain and each Australian State.
| Country/State | 2008 | 2007 |
| Great Britain | 2,538 | 2,946 |
| Australia | 1,464 | 1,603 |
| NSW | 397 | 435 |
| Qld | 327 | 360 |
| Vic | 303 | 332 |
| WA | 209 | 235 |
| SA | 99 | 124 |
| NT | 75 | 58 |
| Tas | 40 | 45 |
| ACT | 14 | 14 |
The 2007 raw data was sourced from: International Road Safety Comparisons: The 2007 Report PDF file
An idea of the similar, road deaths per 100,000 population rates, in the UK Counties, taking the Five extremes from each end of the spectrum :
| 2008 | Area |
| 27.84 | City of London |
| 12.94 | Cleveland |
| 12.37 | Northumbria |
| 10.86 | Cambridgeshire |
| 10.66 | Leicestershire |
| 3.23 | Merseyside |
| 3.19 | Hertfordshire |
| 2.46 | Gtr. Manchester |
| 2.31 | West Midlands |
| 1.58 | London Metropolitan |
Data Files:
Fatal Accident rates in Australia 1984-2008.xls