A global approach at all levels; On the way to integrated road safety programmes.

Many developed and developing countries are confronted with either stabilized or upward trends in road accidents and road casualties. The review of road safety actions does not reveal in the near future new, revolutionary, acceptable and feasible measures to improve road safety. This demands for a more cost-effective implementation of existing measures: implementation of integrated road safety programmes. In these programmes a set of co-ordinated activities will be carried out by a variety of agencies solving a number of well-defined safety problems in a framework of the total road traffic system. The analysis and solution of road safety problems require knowledge of the accident process on a level of the individual road-user in/on his vehicle in the traffic surroundings. From this staring-point accident prevention strategies must be developed, which deal with characteristics of road users, vehicles, roads, road surroundings and their interactions. A few possibilities are given of how to define safety problems and how to set priorities. Problem identification and priority setting of safety measures are based on the potential assessment of the perception of ""facts and figures"" on road safety. Given a functional split many agencies are responsible for various aspects of road safety. This requires co-ordination: vertically between international, national, regional and local authorities and horizontally between different bodies on one level. In some countries, such as France, Austria and the Netherlands, the new approach is to set political goals (qualitative and quantitative) and to mobilize all different bodies and interest groups. Evaluation of road safety programmes and a continuous monitoring activity deliver information about how road users respond to these programmes and whether or not expected accident reduction appears. It enables us to adjust programmes and to make them more effective. Based on research from different countries examples are given of integrated road safety programmes and their effectiveness is evaluated. (A)