Injury, Int. J. Care Injured 44 S4 (2013) S3
Contents lists available at SciVerse ScienceDirect
Injury j o u r n a l h o m e p a g e : w w w. e l s ev i e r. c o m / l o c a t e / i n j u r y
Implementing proven road safety interventions saves lives Kelly Larsona, Kelly Henninga a
Bloomberg Philanthropies, New York, New York 10075, USA
Today road traffic injuries are the 8th leading cause of death globally, killing 1.24 million people each year.1 Unless action is taken, the World Health Organization estimates that road traffic injuries will become the 5th leading cause of death by 2030. Ninety-two percent of road traffic deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries. Vulnerable road users - pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists are at greatest risk accounting for half of the 1.24 million deaths. WHO recently published the Global Status Report on Road Safety (2013) showing that road traffic fatalities have not increased since the last report in 2009, but 1.24 million deaths each year is unacceptable. In 2010, the United National General Assembly adopted resolution 64/255 which proclaimed a Decade of Action for Road Safety (2011-2020).2 The goal is for governments to prioritize road safety and stabilize the number of road traffic deaths, saving 5 million lives over the course of the Decade. In order to reach this goal, governments must prioritize adoption and/or improvement of road safety legislation and support implementation and enforcement of proven road safety interventions. This requires political will and an integrated approach involving the collaboration of many sectors including, but not limited to Health, Public Security and Transport. We know what works to reduce fatalities and injuries on the world’s roads. Proven interventions include increasing helmet and seat-belt use, reducing speed, and eliminating drinking and driving:3,4 • Wearing a seat-belt reduces the risk of fatality among front seat passengers by 40-50% and 25-75% for rear seat car occupants • Helmet use decreases risk of injuries by 70% and deaths by 40% • Research on effective speed management indicates that speed limits on urban roads should not exceed 50 km/h • Global standards for drinking and driving laws set acceptable blood alcohol content (BAC) limits at less than 0.05% for adult drivers. Bloomberg Philanthropies has committed $125M over 5 years (2010-2014) to address these proven interventions in ten low-
0020-1383/$ – see front matter © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
and middle-income countries that make up almost half of road traffic fatalities globally. The Bloomberg Global Road Safety Programme is currently focusing on Brazil, Cambodia, China, Egypt, India, Kenya, Mexico, Russia, Turkey and Vietnam. Through strong social marketing campaigns combined with increased enforcement and improved local and national laws, we’ve seen progress in many focus countries. In Afyon, Turkey seat-belt use has increased from 4% in 2010 to 73% in 2013. Similarly, seatbelt use in Ivanovo, Russia has increased from 45% to above 90%. Following implementation and enforcement of a comprehensive 2007 helmet law in Vietnam, helmet use among drivers and passengers remains steady at about 90%, up from 40% prior to the 2007 law. The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health International Injury Research Unit (IIRU) has monitored and evaluated the implementation of these activities since 2010. Monitoring is critical to demonstrate the enormous returns both in injury prevention and lives saved - such investments in road traffic injury prevention can have. This supplement issue provides important data that can help us generate new knowledge for the road safety field and highlights the potential gains with strategic investments. Conflict of interest None to declare
References 1. 2. 3. 4.
WHO. WHO Global Status Report on Road Safety 2013: supporting a decade of action: World Health Organization; 2013. WHO. Saving millions of lives – decade of action for road safety 2011–2020. Geneva: WHO;2011. Peden MM, WHO. World report on road traffic injury prevention. Geneva: WHO; 2004. WHO. Global status report on road safety : time for action. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2009.
Contents lists available at SciVerse ScienceDirect
Injury j o u r n a l h o m e p a g e : w w w. e l s ev i e r. c o m / l o c a t e / i n j u r y
Implementing proven road safety interventions saves lives Kelly Larsona, Kelly Henninga a
Bloomberg Philanthropies, New York, New York 10075, USA
Today road traffic injuries are the 8th leading cause of death globally, killing 1.24 million people each year.1 Unless action is taken, the World Health Organization estimates that road traffic injuries will become the 5th leading cause of death by 2030. Ninety-two percent of road traffic deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries. Vulnerable road users - pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists are at greatest risk accounting for half of the 1.24 million deaths. WHO recently published the Global Status Report on Road Safety (2013) showing that road traffic fatalities have not increased since the last report in 2009, but 1.24 million deaths each year is unacceptable. In 2010, the United National General Assembly adopted resolution 64/255 which proclaimed a Decade of Action for Road Safety (2011-2020).2 The goal is for governments to prioritize road safety and stabilize the number of road traffic deaths, saving 5 million lives over the course of the Decade. In order to reach this goal, governments must prioritize adoption and/or improvement of road safety legislation and support implementation and enforcement of proven road safety interventions. This requires political will and an integrated approach involving the collaboration of many sectors including, but not limited to Health, Public Security and Transport. We know what works to reduce fatalities and injuries on the world’s roads. Proven interventions include increasing helmet and seat-belt use, reducing speed, and eliminating drinking and driving:3,4 • Wearing a seat-belt reduces the risk of fatality among front seat passengers by 40-50% and 25-75% for rear seat car occupants • Helmet use decreases risk of injuries by 70% and deaths by 40% • Research on effective speed management indicates that speed limits on urban roads should not exceed 50 km/h • Global standards for drinking and driving laws set acceptable blood alcohol content (BAC) limits at less than 0.05% for adult drivers. Bloomberg Philanthropies has committed $125M over 5 years (2010-2014) to address these proven interventions in ten low-
0020-1383/$ – see front matter © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
and middle-income countries that make up almost half of road traffic fatalities globally. The Bloomberg Global Road Safety Programme is currently focusing on Brazil, Cambodia, China, Egypt, India, Kenya, Mexico, Russia, Turkey and Vietnam. Through strong social marketing campaigns combined with increased enforcement and improved local and national laws, we’ve seen progress in many focus countries. In Afyon, Turkey seat-belt use has increased from 4% in 2010 to 73% in 2013. Similarly, seatbelt use in Ivanovo, Russia has increased from 45% to above 90%. Following implementation and enforcement of a comprehensive 2007 helmet law in Vietnam, helmet use among drivers and passengers remains steady at about 90%, up from 40% prior to the 2007 law. The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health International Injury Research Unit (IIRU) has monitored and evaluated the implementation of these activities since 2010. Monitoring is critical to demonstrate the enormous returns both in injury prevention and lives saved - such investments in road traffic injury prevention can have. This supplement issue provides important data that can help us generate new knowledge for the road safety field and highlights the potential gains with strategic investments. Conflict of interest None to declare
References 1. 2. 3. 4.
WHO. WHO Global Status Report on Road Safety 2013: supporting a decade of action: World Health Organization; 2013. WHO. Saving millions of lives – decade of action for road safety 2011–2020. Geneva: WHO;2011. Peden MM, WHO. World report on road traffic injury prevention. Geneva: WHO; 2004. WHO. Global status report on road safety : time for action. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2009.
