Skip to main content

ITF’s three-point plan to reduce road deaths

A three-point plan to help countries reduce road deaths and serious injuries has been unveiled at the International Transport Forum (ITF) in Leipzig, Germany. The keynote address by Prince Michael of Kent, a member of the UK’s royal family, was presented to transport ministers at a summit focused on transport safety and security. Outside of the ITF, Prince Michael is known for establishing an award scheme that recognises innovation in road safety worldwide.
May 24, 2018 Read time: 2 mins
A three-point plan to help countries reduce road deaths and serious injuries has been unveiled at the 998 International Transport Forum (ITF) in Leipzig, Germany. The keynote address by Prince Michael of Kent, a member of the UK’s royal family, was presented to transport ministers at a summit focused on transport safety and security.


Outside of the ITF, Prince Michael is known for establishing an award scheme that recognises innovation in road safety worldwide.

Speaking upon the UN Sustainable Development Goals to halve road deaths and injuries by 2020, he said:
“Unfortunately, it is clear now that this will not be achieved. Worse still, if present trends continue, the World Bank has forecast that by 2030 another 21.7 million deaths and 875.7 million injuries will occur on the world’s roads.”

Going forward, he recommended a new UN road safety target will help get the goals back on track.

“The serious risk is that, without a new casualty reduction target, the road safety performance of UN member states will be weakly measured and consequently poorly managed,” he added.

The second proposal involves mobilising new resources to finance road injury prevention programmes. Prince Michael is pleased the UK has served a contributor of the World Bank’s global road safety facility, “but now is the time for other countries to come forward and become new donors to the cause”.

Thirdly, Prince Michael stressed a much stronger political commitment to road safety is necessary. He welcomed the Towards Zero Foundation’s decision to establish the Global Network for Road Safety Legislators which aims to encourage parliamentarians to share best practice in road safety legislation and policies.

“Political engagement like this will be a ‘sine qua non’ of effective road injury prevention in the decade to 2030.”

To conclude, Prince Michael advised transport ministers to consider what is at stake between now and 2030.

“Think of the lives that will be lost, the families shattered, and the tragic waste from another twenty million or more road fatalities.”

A full copy of the speech is available %$Linker: 2 External <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?><dictionary /> 0 0 0 link-external here false https://www.itf-oecd.org/keynote-speech-hrh-prince-michael-kent false false%>.

UTC

Related Content

  • December 12, 2018
    Road traffic deaths still rising worldwide, says WHO report
    Poor road safety worldwide is a serious cause for concern, with thousands being injured or killed across the glove every single day. The issue is highlighted by a new report by the World Health Organisation (WHO). This indicates road traffic deaths continue to rise, with annual road fatalities now reaching 1.35 million, compared with 1.25 million just three years ago. The WHO Global status report on road safety 2018 highlights that road traffic injuries are now the leading killer of children and young pe
  • May 23, 2018
    TISPOL welcomes EC measures to reduce road deaths
    TISPOL has welcomed a package of measures announced by the European Commission (EC) to help reduce the 25,000 deaths that occur on EU roads annually. Ruth Purdie, general secretary of TISPOL, says: “Today’s announcements could represent the biggest step forward in road safety in Europe since the introduction of the seat belt." Antonio Avenoso of the European Transport Safety Council said the EC’s announcements require backing from EU member states and the European Parliament. They should not give in to
  • March 11, 2016
    TRL launches annual research review
    The UK’s Transport Research Laboratory (TRL) has launched its annual research review 2014-2015, containing a summary of 18 months of research activity at TRL, along with expert commentary on connected and automated vehicles; electric vehicles; healthy transport; safety and smart infrastructure. It also looks at implications of healthy transport on road networks, infrastructure and planning as the government announces ‘healthy towns’ and provides insight on the future for self-driving cars and their safet
  • April 17, 2019
    Lyft recalls 3,000 e-bikes across US
    Ride-hailing company Lyft has recalled 3,000 electric bikes from cities in the US because of concerns over their braking systems. The brands affected are Citi Bike in New York, Capital Bikeshare in Washington, DC, and the Bay Area’s Ford GoBike. A similar statement on each company’s website says: “We recently received a small number of reports from riders who experienced stronger than expected braking force on the front wheel. Out of an abundance of caution, we are proactively removing the pedal-assi