Prestigious road safety award won by driver fatigue expert

The highest honour of the Australasian College of Road Safety has been awarded to UNSW Professor Ann Williamson for her excellence in road safety research and dedication to reducing road trauma.

The 2016 College Fellowship award was presented to Williamson at a gala dinner in the Great Hall of Parliament House. The ceremony took place during the college’s annual conference, with Federal Minister for Infrastructure and Transport Darren Chester and College President Lauchlan McIntosh AM presenting the award.

Williamson specialises in the area of driver fatigue and heavy vehicle safety. She established the UNSW Injury Risk Management Centre in 1999 and became director of the UNSW Transport and Road Safety Research unit in 2010. She has worked closely with the aviation, rail and long-distance transport agencies, as well as with government and regulators, to have fatigue recognised as an important issue requiring improved work practices and management.

McIntosh said Williamson was an outstanding advocate for road safety both in Australia and internationally.

“Professor Williamson has contributed enormously to excellence in road safety research and to providing a strong evidence base for effective road safety interventions,” he said.

“Her dedication to developing and sharing road safety knowledge has been shown through her tireless efforts to work collaboratively in the field with various injury prevention and accident research centres and researchers who work in the field of road safety.”

Williamson’s personal commitment to reducing road trauma has seen her contribute her own time to various road safety and injury prevention committees and to state and federal parliamentary road safety inquiries.

She regularly engages with media on a range of road safety topics as an independent expert voice and has contributed to the development of the field through teaching, including PhD supervision.

In 2012, she was appointed to the newly established National Road Safety Remuneration Tribunal. This was established to improve road safety for truck drivers by reducing the economic incentives for drivers to make unrealistic deadlines, cut corners on safety and maintenance, or take illicit drugs to keep them awake to get to destinations on time.

“It is an honour to be awarded the ACRS Fellowship and I look forward to continuing to support the great work of the college as we aim to halve road deaths and injuries by 2020,” Williamson said.

Image credit: ©iStockphoto.com/Nobilior