Road Safety Research
Research has shown that young drivers who achieve 120 hours of supervised driving experience, in a range of driving conditions, are less likely to be involved in serious motor vehicle accidents in the years following the attainment of their driver’s licence.
Reference:
Healy, D, Imberger, K, & Catchpole, J, The Victorian Graduated Licensing System: Outcome Evaluation 2017, VicRoads.
About the TAC L2P Program - Banyule
The TAC L2P Program in Banyule is a learner driver mentor program that helps eligible young people accrue the mandatory 120 hours of supervised driving experience required for a probationary licence. The TAC L2P Program Banyule is funded by the Transport Accident Commission (TAC) and Department of Transport (DoT). The program is supported by the Victorian Government and delivered by the Banyule Nillumbik Local Learning and Employment Network (BNLLEN) on behalf of Banyule City Council.
About TAC L2P Volunteer Mentoring
The TAC L2P program benefits learner drivers as well as the broader community. The program requires local community members to become Volunteer Mentors to directly help a young person in need by supervising weekly drive sessions and providing road safety awareness.
All Volunteer Mentors must undertake a screening and interview process and participate in training prior to being eligible to become a Volunteer Mentor.
To be eligible you must:
- Hold a current full Victorian driver licence
- Commit to 2 hours per week for a minimum of 12 months
- Successfully obtain/pass a Volunteer Working with Children Check, CrimCheck and Driver History Check (all costs are covered by the program)
- Successfully participate in a full training program (delivered by Department of Transport)
A training program for Volunteer Mentors is provided to ensure that they are well prepared and understand what their role entails. To find out more about the TAC L2P Program, a Volunteer Mentor Brochure can be viewed here.
To find out more about volunteering with L2P, please call the Program Coordinator on 0430 038 450 to express your interest.
Learner Drivers
Information and Application Process Details for Learner Drivers
Learner Drivers need to meet the following eligibility criteria to join the TAC L2P Program:
- Be aged between 16 and 21 years old
- Hold a current learner permit
- Have no access to a vehicle or a supervising driver
- Live in the Banyule area
Head to the VicRoads website to complete an Application Form.
We encourage young people to contact the Program Officer to discuss their eligibility prior to completing the Application Form.
For more information: Violeta Sljivic, Program Officer (M) 0430 038 450 (E) violeta@bnllen.org.au
Case Study - Oliver & Corrado
Corrado comes from a sales engineering background in the compressed air industry in which he worked for around 30 years until he retired. However Corrado is not one for sitting around and doing nothing, so after he retired he looked around for productive things to do with his free time.
Vic Roads had such a backlog of licence test applications after so many lockdowns that they were reaching out for additional licence testing officers. When Corrado heard about this he thought he would give it a try. As a result he secured a six month contract as a licence testing officer for Vic Roads. He worked as a licence testing officer at Bundoora and also spent time working at Box Hill.
Corrado also approached an Employment Services provider to check what options might be available. The job provider suggested he try volunteering and asked ‘what do you like doing?’. When Corrado replied ‘I like driving,’ volunteering with the L2P program was the obvious choice. Not only does Corrado bring his enthusiasm for driving to the program but also his valuable experience as a licence testing officer.
Corrado has been with the Banyule TAC L2P program for 18 months, and in that time he has already mentored four students all of whom successfully obtained their provisional licence. He currently mentoring his fifth learner, a young man called Oliver.
Oliver moved out from his home and no longer had contact with his parents consequently had no one to help him achieve the mandatory 120 hours. When he heard about the L2P program from people who host his current accommodation, he thought he should apply.
Oliver spent a month working with a professional driving instructor and was then matched with Corrado, excited about opportunity to accumulate the 120 hours.
Corrado says when you meet your learner for the first time you are both on your best behavior. But you spend a lot of time together in the car and start chatting and discussing things and getting to know each other, and developing a bond.
Oliver feels that one of the best things about the program, apart from ‘’getting his hours up’’ is getting to know Corrado. He has felt his driving skills improving as well as his confidence. He also has a more thorough understanding of the road rules, ‘Sometimes I overhear conversations and people just having chats about road rules. I’m thinking, I know the answer to that!’
His advice to young learners considering the program is ‘be grateful, and take advantage of this opportunity!’
Corrado says that he doesn’t get the opportunity to meet a lot of young people except when he is sitting in the car next to them as part of this program. He really enjoys it because, ‘it gets me thinking differently to having to talk to adults all the time.’
His advice to potential volunteers is, ‘if you're looking to get a lot of self-satisfaction and meeting interesting people along the way, get involved in the L2P program’.