Message from the President

How 2009 became a year of wins for Members

I hope all our Members enjoyed a safe and happy holiday. At the NRMA Annual General Meeting in November I reported to Members on some of the advocacy wins we have had on your behalf last year.

In the weeks that followed the meeting a number of government announcements showed NRMA's effectiveness in working on your behalf. Earlier this year I wrote to the Prime Minister calling for additional Federal funding for the entire Kempsey by-pass on the Pacific highway. The Australian Government responded to our request by announcing an additional $58 million to begin work on that dangerous stretch of the highway, which was the site of one of the horrific bus crashes in 1989.

We were also pleased to see the NSW Government commit much needed funds to fix local roads in the Dungog Shire Council. This followed the NRMA's campaign to support Dungog motorists who uploaded videos of their local roads on our RoadTube website.

The NRMA has also been calling on the NSW Government to begin planning for major road projects in NSW. By getting them 'shovel ready' the Government can source the funds they need to get the job done.

We were pleased to see the Government release a comprehensive plan to overhaul the M5 - one of Sydney's most congested motorways. This was a good first step and we will now be monitoring the progress to make sure the M5 upgrade meets its deadline.

Late last year NRMA released a report which showed that many learner drivers found that completing the 120 hours of compulsory driver training was a strain on parents.

We have been working with the NSW Government to see the process improved and called for a system that sees every hour (to a maximum of 10 hours) spent with a professional driving instructor would be tripled in the learner log book. The Government adopted our proposal, which strikes a happy medium between making sure learner drivers get the experience they need to stay safe, while reducing the burden on families.

The wins come off the back of announcements in the latter part of the year that the NSW Government would adopt NRMA's proposal for new fluorescent signage around school zones and changes to the demerit system for low-range offences.

It was a great way to finish 2009. While these wins are significant there is still much work to be done. I wish all our Members a good 2010 and look forward to the year ahead.

Ninety years of NRMA - join the celebrations

Almost 90 years ago a handful of motorists gathered in a Sydney pub to work together in standing up for the rights of motorists. They would become the first Members of NRMA and from that meeting the largest motoring club in the southern hemisphere was born.

This year, we celebrate nine decades of serving our Members. On January 25 we will be holding a special 90th Anniversary fundraising dinner in Sydney and there will also be activities at this year's NRMA Motorfest on Australia Day.

NRMA first formed as a lobby group for the people in NSW and ACT who had traded in their horse and cart for a car. Five years later NRMA began helping people broken down on the road.

The response rate for NRMA patrols to broken down Members is one of the highest in the world. When you've been doing something for 85 years you become very good at it, yet NRMA is constantly investing more in its patrols and call centre staff to raise the bar even further.

Over the last 90 years we've also helped shape laws. When we first began lobbying governments, the state's infrastructure was still designed for the horse and cart. As more people bought cars, governments looked at new ways to raise revenue through taxing fuel, registrations and tolls.

When NRMA and its sister clubs succeeded in securing a freeze on the annual increase of the fuel excise in 2000 it helped save motorists almost 10 cents per litre on the price of petrol today. We've also succeeded in securing more funds for the Pacific Highway, changes to the learner licensing laws, improvements to older driver laws, plans to upgrade the M5 and getting work underway to build the Hunter Expressway.

We are proud of what we've achieved and look forward to another 90 years of Member service.

Wendy Machin

President

January 2010