CONDOLENCES FOR THE VICTIMS OF THE BUS CRASH
05/07/2017
Official 0by30 in cities pre-event to the 3rd Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety 2020
18/02/2020It is one thing to set goals & targets, it’s another to achieve them.
These are the words of Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, General Director of WHO concerning the launch today of the Global status report on road safety 2018.
1,35 million people were killed on the world’s road in 2016
That’s 3 700 people dying on the world’s roads every day, and not to forget the tens of millions more who are injured or disabled every year, people who suffer life-altering injuries with long lasting effects.
Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus:
“One of the most heart-breaking statistics in this report is that road traffic injury is the leading cause of death for people aged between 5 and 29 years. No child should die or be seriously injured while they walk, cycle or play. We must return our streets to our children. They have a right to feel safe on them and we need to create cities and transport systems that reduce reliance on cars. My hope is that this report will save lives, prevent injuries and mean fewer emergency responders knock on doors with messages they should never have to deliver.”
Africa has the worst record with a rate of 27.5 deaths per 100,000 population, the risk is more than 3 times higher than in high-income countries where the average rate is 8.3 deaths 100,000 population.
Vulnerable road users and especially pedestrians have to pay a huge price because the dangers in the streets are not reduced. Speed reduction is an effective way to save many lives and reduce serious injuries. Pedestrians risk to die is 5,5 times greater than for cyclists in Europe even 6,5 x higher. So much more needs to be done for this group especially children, elderly and persons with disabilities and reduced mobility.
Jeannot Mersch, FEVR President: “Telling us that this raise comes from a growth in population and more traffic is no excuse for more action and reaction to reach the targets, we all well know how and what, when and where, so Let´s Go towards Vision Zero, all together, from here and there and everywhere.”
Read the full report here:
