At Road Sense Australia, we believe in empowering individuals to become responsible and safe drivers. Our Traffic Offender Intervention Program (TOIP) is an initiative designed to provide drivers who have committed offences with a deeper understanding of safe road use and responsible driving behaviour. In this blog article, we’ll take you through the key aspects of our program and what you can expect.
What is TOIP?
A Traffic Offender Intervention Program is a diversional program for people to attend if they are facing court for a traffic offence or if they are trying to get their licence back after having it suspended.
In any educational program, it is important to have a positive attitude towards participants; after all, people make mistakes, and it’s what we do with them that counts. Ultimately, what we want is for people to learn to be safer road users – so it is with this mentality that we engage with participants in TOIP.
The goal is not to shock or scare people into behaving themselves but to provide enough information that participants are able to empathise with the genuinely disastrous and wide-reaching effects that risky driving has on families just like theirs, day in and day out.
Over the course of the day evidence is laid out to explain how and why road users should engage in low-risk driving behavior, both for their own benefit and for the safety of others, considering both cognitive and emotional factors.
After parts A and B, the program concludes with the Final Evaluation, in which participants conduct their own behavioural analysis of the thoughts, feelings, and actions that led up to the offence with which they were charged. In doing so, a simple plan of action is developed to prevent the same situation from reoccurring in future and, ultimately, to lower the participant’s risk of reoffending. We finish the program by considering this plan in relation to preparing for court, a particularly relevant section for people who are representing themselves.
Why Choose us?
We are a not-for-profit organisation that creates safer road users and focuses on educating the community. According to NSW Department of Justice we are the largest TOIP provider in Australia.
TOIP aims not to shock but to provide information that fosters empathy and cultivates motivation for low– risk driving behaviour.
What is the structure of the Traffic Offender Intervention Program?
The first half of the program, part A, involves a detailed analysis of the “Five Fatal Factors” – the top five major causes of death and injury on Australian roads: speeding, intoxication, distraction, fatigue, and not wearing a seatbelt/helmet.
These modules teach participants about the physics, biology, and psychological factors that lead to risky driving behaviours, and present low-risk driving principles that are firmly grounded in evidence as an alternative. In other words, rather than simply demand a set of low risk driving behaviours, we fully explain the rationale behind making each of them a habit using science. We also discuss some particularly at-risk groups of road users (motorcyclists, bicyclists, and pedestrians(1))and consider some basic vehicle maintenance strategies in this section.
Part B involves an examination of the human cost of road trauma. With each of our presenters having at least five years of experience or more in a frontline service – for example, first responders – to draw upon (if not personal experience with the road toll), the real-world consequences of high-risk driving are explored in a matter-of-fact way, the objective being to cultivate the motivation necessary to act on the knowledge obtained in Part A.
What are the delivery options for TOIP?
TOIP offers three flexible methods for participants to choose from:
Online Self-Paced Course
– Accessible online via laptop or computer.
– Pause and resume at any time.
– Completion time: Up to 32 days.
– 10 modules, completed in approximately 8 hours.
– Quizzes with 100% correct answers required for passing.
Virtual Classroom via ZOOM
– Zoom class with one of our presenters and other participants from the community
– Conducted within a day.
– Requires stable internet connection and laptop/tablet (not mobile phones).
Face-to-Face Course
– In-person sessions with one of our presenters and other participants from the community
– Completed within a day.
All participants must complete the Final Evaluation at the end of the program, a Certificate of Completion will be issued within 1-2 business days after submission.
What is the difference between a Court Report vs a Service NSW Certificate?
Court Report:
- Details the outcome of program completion.
- A statement from the participant about what they have gained from the program
- Sent to the participant’s designated email, lawyer (if represented), and the relevant courthouse
Service NSW Certificate:
- Issued if referred to TOIP by the RMS
- A physical certificate is posted to the participant’s address and must be presented in person at Service NSW
- RSA offers standard and express post options for RMS Certificates
Once a person has been charged with a traffic offence and is facing court, there are only a few things they can then do to help themselves going forward.
Attending a Traffic Offender Intervention Program is one of them.
CLICK HERE to register for a Traffic Offender Intervention Program today.
