Travel safely through our Southern Forests

A series of guidelines, that double as either a flyer or a poster, have been developed by the Shire to provide tips on travelling safely through the Southern Forests region. Originally directed towards our travelling workforce, the tips will also be useful for tourists and are applicable to country areas with similar driving conditions as our own.

The tips are available in Chinese, Estonian, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean and English.

Click here to download the safe driving tips.

This initiative was a result of both industry and the Shire of Manjimup looking for ways to address the increasing number of deaths on our roads, in particular, international visitors. The Occupational Health and Safety Coordinator for Newton Orchards and Valley View Organics of Manjimup developed a three page safety document, in English, which was being used as a part of the employee induction. The Shire of Manjimup Community Services department further developed the content of this safety document, giving it a style and format to make the information simple and succinct.

The languages that the safety tips have been translated into were chosen in consultation with Newton Orchards, who as one of the larger employers of international travellers, advised that there were seven nationalities (key language areas) of the itinerant workforce, who are employed regularly. The Shire will introduce more translations of the safe driving tips, as the need arises.

The project was funded by a prize received three years ago by the Shire's Community Services Department from the Hearth Foundation Awards - this was deemed a very suitable community project to spend the money on.

The flyer, which is already receiving very positive feedback, has been distributed to industry, producers, Visitor Centres, Community Resource Centres, libraries, Southern Forests Food Council, Police, local politicians and via the website.