What human invention has caused more deaths than World War I or the Spanish flu, both among the worst killers of all time? It’s the modern road transport system.
Since the automobile came into being at the end of the 19th Century, more than 50 million people have died on the world’s roads.
The first among these fatalities is said to be Mary Driscoll, a pedestrian struck by a car in London in 1896. At the time, the coroner was reported to have said “this should never happen again”.
Unfortunately, road traffic crashes are now a routine occurrence, with a staggering 3700 fatalities each day -- that’s one death every 24 seconds.
How did we reach this point?
Let’s imagine for a moment that a clever person conceived a new mode of transport, announcing “It’s great - comfortable, fast and fun. There is just one flaw: it kills 1.3 million people per year and injures 50 million more. Half of those killed use the system voluntarily, while the other half just happen to be in the vicinity, at the wrong place at the wrong time. And by the way, it will become the leading cause of death for children and young adults aged 5 to 29 years.”
No sane government would permit it!
But 150 years ago, society set about generating a demand for the private motor vehicle, designing ways to make it travel faster, producing it on a massive scale, and reconfiguring cities to accommodate its use.
People who could not afford it or preferred to walk, cycle or use public transport were ridiculed in advertisements.
Of course, many benefits have come from our current road transport system. These range from more timely access to emergency services, to more comfortable and convenient transport to work, school or go on holidays and to huge growth in the transportation of goods.
But from that time, the number of people killed and seriously injured began to steadily rise, and with very little action to prevent these deaths and injuries.
The consequences are untold human suffering, hospitalizations and families thrown into poverty when young fathers or mothers are killed or disabled for life.
Why have we consented to this? Because road traffic crashes are considered inevitable accidents? As a price to pay for mobility? Or because of the pressure of a lucrative industry?
We have accepted this situation for far too long!
Today, we know what needs to be done.
Countries like Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom have already reduced road traffic deaths by 80% or more from peak levels in the 1970s. This reduction was achieved by designing a safe transport system that takes into account human error, building cars and roads with safety features, adopting and enforcing strong laws on risks such as speeding and drinking and driving as well as strengthening emergency medical care.
Countries and cities worldwide are now aspiring to Vision Zero, or no road traffic deaths or severe injuries. The city of Helsinki, Finland, achieved this in 2019. In public health, we call that eradication. By adopting the safe system approach and setting ambitious targets, the hope is to replicate the spectacular results achieved elsewhere.
Unfortunately, fatalities and injuries from road traffic crashes are still on the rise in two-thirds of countries worldwide.
In September 2015, all Heads of State committed to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. This includes the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target 3.6 to halve road traffic deaths and injuries by 2030.
At the time, the road safety community was exhilarated. Finally, the world had recognized that road traffic deaths are a major health and development challenge ─ but one with a solution ─ and world leaders have taken the bold decision needed to address this scourge.
Today, nearly five years later, we are now in a new decade. Despite some progress with countries like Luxembourg that are on track to achieve SDG target 3.6, globally the decrease in road traffic deaths has not even started.
Many decades ago, the world was at a crossroad: a transport system centered around private motor vehicles versus one which maintained a share of the road for pedestrians, cyclists and users of public transport.
Over time, the decision taken then has resulted in a deadly system that has not only led to injury-related fatalities, but also to deaths and ill-health from air pollution and a sedentary lifestyle.
Today, we are at another turning point.
It is up to us to decide if we wait a few decades to benefit from the full rollout of technological innovations such as the automated car while at the same time another 50 million people lose their lives or implement tried and tested solutions now that will make the whole transport system safe for all.
Delegates who convened at the 3rd Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety from 19-20 February 2020 in Sweden adopted the “Stockholm Declaration” that will pave the way for the necessary political will and additional innovative approaches to drive progress towards halving global road traffic deaths and injuries by 2030.
Let’s hope the right follow up decisions will be taken at national and local levels, so that we can move quickly towards a safe, healthy and clean transport system for everyone.