Samantha Cockfield – My Accidental Vocation
At University Sam envisaged a work life that would be of service to humanity, but also take her places that saw her experience the world – the UN, the Red Cross or another NGO is what she’d imagined. When she joined the TAC as a graduate, there was no Road Safety Branch (it was one person providing grants to other road safety agencies) and she couldn’t have envisaged this was the organisation that would give her entry into those international NGOs. She was the fourth person to join the TAC road safety team and so started not just a new job, but a 30+ year journey on what she considers to be more than a career – a life-long vocation.
Samantha (Sam) is the Head of Road Safety at the Transport Accident Commission (TAC) and has been involved in the road safety field since 1992, starting out as an economist of the TAC’s first Blackspot Program. In her position, Sam is responsible for the development and delivery of the TAC’s road safety program which embraces the safe system philosophy and spans: road infrastructure, vehicle safety initiatives and programs designed to support positive road user behaviour. The program has a strong focus on being evidenced based and is supported by data collection and analysis, research and evaluation programs. Sam has dedicated her career to the elimination of road deaths and serious injury – advocating for road safety both regionally and internationally.
This event is free for ACRS members and $20 for non-members. Learn more about ACRS Membership here.