A methodological approach to national road safety policies

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A methodological approach to
national road safety policies
ETSC Best in Europe Conference 2006 eSafety that
matters Learning with countries in the SEC Belt

• Richard ALLSOP and Maurizio TIRA

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ETSC Review in the context of

• enlargement of the EU
• ETSCs SEC Belt project
• wide disparity in levels of risk to road users
  across the EU
• the shared responsibility of working towards the
  EU target to halve the number of deaths on the
  roads within a decade

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Working Party for the Review
Maurizio Tira (Chairman) Maurizio Tira (Chairman)
Richard Allsop Bernhard Biehl Ilona Buttler Patric Derweduwen Rune Elvik Dominique Fleury Jaroslav Heinrich
Richard Allsop Bernhard Biehl Ilona Buttler Patric Derweduwen Rune Elvik Dominique Fleury Péter Holló Klaus Machata Jesús Monclus Tomaž Pavcic Antonio Avenoso
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Findings of the Review are based upon

• historical background of road safety in the SEC
  Belt countries
• personal analyses of road safety policy in four
  SEC Belt countries by working party members from
  those countries
• examples of good practice from within and
  outside the SEC Belt countries
• documented experience of the formulation and
  implementation of national road safety policies
  in EU Member States

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Key findings of the Review

• checklist to help national decision-makers and
  practitioners to reduce death and injury on their
  roads through road safety policy by

assessing their achievement so far in
road safety policy and
identifying ways of making further progress
- taking into account the specific features
of their particular country
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Key findings of the Review

• a framework for national analysis of road
  safety problems on which to base development of
  an effective targeted national road safety
  programme to suit the prevailing circumstances in
  that country
• prerequisites for policy that is translated
  into action

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Key findings of the Review

• the recommended strategic thinking and action are
  vital for sustained longer-term reduction in
  death and injury on the roads
• but it will take time and should not become a
  substitute for action in the meantime
• every country can take known and affordable
  measures here and now to reduce death and injury
  quickly
• nothing the Review recommends should delay such
  action

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Checklist for national road safety policies

• intended to help and encourage
• intended as suggestions and advice
• intended to be applied flexibly
• not a one size fits all prescription that can
  guarantee success
• but every item is based on successful experience
  and can help towards reducing death and injury on
  a countrys roads

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Checklist for national road safety policies

• Covers four phases of formulation and
  implementation of policy
• Adopting a road safety strategy
• From strategy to plan of action
• From plan to implementation and updating
• Establishing and enhancing underpinning
  capabilities

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1 Adopting a road safety strategy

• Build political support and commitment
• Build public and private sector awareness and
  involvement
• Consider safety holistically with social
  inclusion, sustainability and mobility
• Create a vision or philosophy for the safety of
  the road transport system
• Commit to a strategy for movement towards the
  envisaged safer system

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2 From strategy to plan of action

• Keep under review the legal framework for use of
  the roads
• Treat risk of death or injury on the roads as a
  public health problem
• Analyse road safety problems from a systemic
  perspective
• Set challenging yet achievable quantitative
  targets
• Create a road safety action plan for timely
  achievement of the targets

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3 From plan to implementation and updating

• Identify institutional roles clearly
• Choose measures scientifically
• Allocate responsibility for each measure close to
  the problem it addresses
• Secure enough government and other funding to
  make the targets achievable
• Establish transparent and trusted procedures for
  monitoring and evaluation

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4 Establishing and enhancing underpinning
capabilities

• Effective enforcement of laws requiring
  safety-related behaviour
• Emergency response and trauma management to
  mitigate injury in collisions
• Accident and casualty data collected
  systematically and accessible to users
• Exposure data and performance indicators
• Research to inform strategy and measures
• Training for all relevant professional staff
• Exchange of knowledge about best practice

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Framework for national analysis of road safety
problems

• Identify problems most important for the country
  and concentrate on those
• Recognise links between problems
• Analyse problems in terms of their various
  dimensions
• Watch for new problems emerging and some older
  problems declining

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Dimensions of problem analysis

• Magnitude number of resulting accidents and
  injuries
• Severity degree of resulting injury and damage
• Externality which group of road users injures
  which?
• Complexity number of risk factors contributing
  to the problem
• Inequity disparity between risk and benefits
  from the road use concerned

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Dimensions of problem analysis

• Territoriality geographical extent and
  distribution
• Dynamics is the problem getting worse or
  getting better?
• Perception how important is
  the problem seen to be?
• Amenability to treatment what are the prospects
  of reducing the problem by taking road safety
  measures?

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Prerequisites for policy that is translated
into action

• Understanding of the circumstances in the country
  concerned
• Mobilisation of technical and organisational
  expertise
• Articulation of the problem
• Generation of political will and commitment
• Construction of a plan of action
• Implementation and evaluation
• Feedback into rearticulation of the problem

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This strategic thinking and action is vital for
the longer term but it will take time

• on no account should it become a substitute for
  action in the meantime
• every country can take known and affordable
  measures here and now to reduce death and injury
  quickly
• sensible action today will help tomorrows
  strategy
• nothing the Review recommends should delay such
  action