Road Safety a Global Priority

Worldwide, over 700,000 people die and over ten million are crippled or injured every year in preventable vehicle collisions, with the vast majority of these deaths (over 70 per cent) occurring in the developing world. The World Health Organization says that for 3 to 35 year olds worldwide, road accidents are now the leading cause of death and disablement when compared to other unintentional injuries and diseases. The 1998 World Disasters Report (by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies) identifies road accidents as a major public health problem facing the developing world.

Over the next decade at least six million could die and 60 million could be crippled or injured in road accidents in developing and transitional countries if the rest of the world stands by and does nothing.

The OECD countries have made very significant progress in safety over the past three decades.

They began to address safety problems aggressively in the 1970s. In most cases, including Canada, deaths and injuries have dropped by at least half since 1972-73.

Road accidents are a huge cost to developing countries, inhibiting their economic and social development. The bottom line is that they lose more each year though road accidents (around US $100 billion) than the total development aid they receive!

The urgency of this situation has led the World Bank to spearhead a World Road Safety Partnership which will involve not only government and international agencies, but also communities and the private sector. The UN will be lobbied to open the new millennium by declaring 2000-2009 the Decade of Road Safety.

In the developing world most deaths and injuries involve commercial vehicles or low-cost means of transport such as walking, non-motorized vehicles and motorcycles. Initial efforts will therefore be aimed at: pedestrian safety; non-motorized vehicles (bicycles, animal/human pulled); motorcycles; children; and trucks, buses and taxis.

A comprehensive strategy is being put into place to address: the road environment; road user behavior; vehicle safety; special needs of developing countries; safety management and orchestration; and health education and promotion.

Source: World Bank

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