Australasian Road Safety Conference 2015 Dr Barry Watson Global road safety: Challenges for the future and learnings from Australasia

Overview How are we performing globally in road safety? Why is there a gap between our global road safety goals and current performance? What strategies are required to bridge, or at least close, this gap? Lessons for other countries from Australasia Lessons for Australasia from elsewhere

Setting the scene: the global road trauma problem Source: WHO Global Status Report on Road Safety, 2013 There are nearly 3400 road deaths per day:  more than 2 deaths per minute  the equivalent of losing a country town every week Road crashes are the 8 th leading cause of death, and the biggest killer of those aged % of road deaths occur in LMICs, but these countries only account for 52% of the world’s motor vehicles More than 50% of those killed are pedestrians, or riders of two or three wheelers Without action, annual road fatalities are predicted to rise to around 1.9 million by 2030 – becoming the 7 th leading cause of death

Our collective challenge Source: WHO Global Status Report on Road Safety, 2013

How are we progressing? Source: WHO Global Status Report on Road Safety, 2013 Change in road traffic deaths: 2007 to 2010 (88 countries) (87 countries)

Factors contributing to the gap in road safety performance

Rapid motorization Between the 2007 and 2010, the number of registered motor vehicles increased globally by 15%, but in: -WHO South East Asia Region they increased by 28% -WHO Western Pacific Region they increased by 25% Many of these new vehicles are motorcycles or other motorized two and three-wheelers Impacts:  Road use has out-stripped infrastructure developments  Vulnerable road users are highly involved in crashes Sources: WHO Global Status Report on Road Safety, 2013; WHO SEAR Fact Sheet, 2013; WHO WPR Fact Sheet, 2013

Representation of vulnerable road users among fatalities 50% 69% Source: WHO Global Status Report on Road Safety, % 38%

Disproportionate funding for road safety Globally, road crashes are estimated to cost LMICs between 1 – 2% of their gross national product (GDP) Among Asian countries, the estimated cost of crashes is US$735 billion, representing 3.3% of GDP Within the Africa region, the estimated cost of crashes ranges from 1% to 9% (in Angola) of GDP Spending on road safety varies across countries, but is not commensurate with economic impacts of crashes Road crashes are sometimes seen as the inevitable collateral damage arising from economic development Sources: WHO Global Status Report on Road Safety, 2013; Wismans et al, 2014; Road Safety in the WHO African Region, 2013

Slow uptake of evidence-based policies and practices (1) Source: WHO Global Status Report on Road Safety, 2013 Between , 35 countries adopted additional road safety laws Only 28 countries (7% of worlds pop.) have comprehensive laws across all 5 risk factors

It is also important that countries adopt internationally recognized:  vehicle safety standards and participate or support New Car Assessment Programs (NCAPs)  road assessment and treatment practices iRAP estimates that:  the majority of the world’s road deaths occur on 10% of the road network  some roads in LMICs are 20 times more risky than others Slow uptake of evidence-based policies and practices (2)

Strategies to reduce the gap in global road safety performance

Global funding opportunities The Millennium Development Goals ( ) did not include road safety The new Sustainable Development Goals ( ) include: Goal 3: Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all:  3.6. By 2020, halve the number of global deaths and injuries from road traffic accidents Goal 11: Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable:  By 2030, provide access to safe, affordable, accessible and sustainable transport systems for all, improving road safety, notably by expanding public transport...

When the 64th General Assembly of the United Nations passed the resolution proclaiming the Decade of Action for Road Safety ( ), it stated: “The solution to the global road safety crisis can only be implemented through multi-sectorial collaboration and partnerships” The need for partnerships

About GRSP GRSP was founded in 1999 in response to the global road trauma problem Our mission is to contribute to a sustainable reduction in road crash death and injury We are hosted by the IFRC, the largest humanitarian organization on the globe This gives us access to 189 National Societies and 17 million active volunteers Our role is to build partnerships between government agencies, private enterprise and civil society organizations

GRSP’s Members

GRSP’s key strategies Global leadership in road safety Member driven initiatives Promotion of strong road safety policies Capacity building and training Creation and dissemination of global knowledge

Americas Africa Europe MENA Asia GRSP’s Global Footprint

Need to align road safety with broader transport, health and environmental agendas to leverage funding:  position vulnerable road user safety as a sustainable transport issue  efforts to enhance public transport can not only reduce congestion but enhance safety, particularly in cities This focus on enhancing safe mobility and more liveable cities is a strong feature of the new Bloomberg Initiative for Global Road Safety Repositioning road safety as a ‘safe mobility’ issue

Builds on Road Safety in 10 Countries (RS10) program BIGRS is a US$125 million program focusing on:  10 priority cities in Africa, Asia and Sth America  5 priority countries in Asia and Africa Strong focus on addressing key risk factors of: drink driving, speeding, motorcycle helmet wearing, and seat belt and child restraint use Bloomberg Initiative for Global Road Safety ( )

The program is using a holistic approach involving:  Supporting civil society to advocate for stronger road safety laws and their implementation  Enhancing the capability of road safety authorities, particularly road police  Enhancing road environment safety and city design, with a strong focus on the needs of vulnerable users  Enhancing the adoption of vehicle safety standards  Enhancing public transport  Monitoring and evaluation Bloomberg Initiative for Global Road Safety ( )

The Safe System Approach is now reflected in the road safety strategies of many countries recognising that: − humans inevitably make mistakes − the road transport system needs to be more ‘human proof’ However, challenges remain in operationalizing the approach in LMICs (as well as HICs): − most examples of safe system practices come from HICs − there is an assumption that additional funding is required to implement a safe systems approach − the underlying concepts are sometimes misunderstood Operationalizing the Safe System Approach

Identify and promote case studies of good practice, particularly low cost initiatives Develop training programs for road safety professionals explaining the approach Promote coordinated approaches to road safety problems to avoid criticisms of “safe silos” e.g. comprehensive speed management strategies Enhance the quality of data across all aspects of the road management system Strategies to better embed the Safe System Approach in LMICs

Within a Safe System framework, considerable potential exists to enhance safety through the application of technology to: -improve vehicle safety for occupants and pedestrians -improve road environment safety through assessing and treating poor roads -encourage compliance with road rules -optimise the interactions between vehicles and road users through ITS and cooperative systems Within LMICs, priority needs to be given to context- effective technology and related implementation issues The role of technology

Legacy of innovation Strong commitment to:  Collection and use of good quality data  Monitoring and evaluation  National and state road safety strategies Strong track record of cooperation and coordination across government and with NGOs Funding from compulsory 3 rd party accident insurance schemes Implementation matters! Lessons from Australasia

2013 fatality rates for OECD and Australian jurisdictions: per 100,000 pop CRICOS No J Source: BITRE, th

Maintaining the drive for innovation:  Setting targets for serious injury reduction  Better engaging civil society in advocacy efforts  Better addressing the needs of vulnerable road users Embedding road safety within a broader perspective of ‘safe mobility’ Leveraging more funding from the private sector Continuing to evolve ‘Safe system’ thinking Global lessons for Australasia

The Safe System Within a context of alert and compliant road users Safe speeds - lower speed more forgiving of human error Physical forces on road users stay within human tolerances Safe roads and roadsides (more forgiving of error) Safe vehicles Source: adapted from Howard, 2009 Elements: Safe roads Safe vehicles Safe people Safe speeds

Another view of a Safe System SAFE INTERACTIONS -Safe Speeds -Separation of users SAFE INTERACTIONS -Safe Speeds -Separation of users SAFE ROADS SAFE VEHICLES SAFE ROAD USERS

Opportunities to bridge the gap in global road safety: 1.Ongoing advocacy for additional funding for road safety 2.Build local capacity to implement evidence-based policies and practices (across all elements of the system), and ensure they are strongly enforced and communicated 3.Build strong partnerships between government, private enterprise and civil society organisations Conclusion (1)

Opportunities to bridge the gap cont’d: 4.Reposition road safety as a ‘safe mobility’ issue 5.Further embed safe systems thinking and practice within LMICs 6.Identify and implement context-effective technologies 7.Build research capacity within LMICs Conclusion (2)

Global Road Safety Partnership c/o International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies P. O. Box , chemin des Crêts CH-1211 Geneva 19 Switzerland Tel: +41 (0) Fax: +41 (0) Website: Dedicated to the sustainable reduction of road crash death and injury Dr Barry Watson Tel.: