Portfolio — 31 July 2026

The Member for Brunswick, Mr Read, used his Assembly contribution to press a pedestrian safety case against large sport utility vehicles and utes in suburban streets, anchoring his argument in fatality data and a specific policy remedy. Mr Read told the Assembly that children are eight times more likely to die when struck by these vehicles than by lighter cars, and that pedestrian deaths in Victoria reached a 17-year high in the previous year [TA-260730-vichns-06b70b591935:s028].

He identified bonnet height as the decisive physical mechanism: bonnets above 100 centimetres reduce driver visibility of small children and shift the point of impact to a child's head or chest rather than the legs [TA-260730-vichns-06b70b591935:s028]. Mr Read cited US and European research finding that bonnet heights at that threshold increase pedestrian fatality risk by approximately 45 per cent.

His proposed remedy was a financial disincentive rather than a design standard — he called on the government to increase vehicle registration fees for large sport utility vehicles and utes registered to a Melbourne address, with exemptions for vehicles serving a genuine farm, business, or commercial purpose. The contribution spans the Transport and Roads and Police and Community Safety domains, and positions the district's voice squarely in an active urban road-safety debate.