Sustainable Road Safety Solutions Sustainable solutions There is a range of sustainable solutions available that can promote road safety in regeneration areas. This chapter identifies the key interventions and indicates in what situations they are deemed suitable. In road safety terms a sustainable solution is one where as a result of the road layout: * Speeds are controlled appropriately without the need for enforcement. * Vehicle - pedestrian - cycle conflict is minimised. * All road users are treated with equal importance. * Accessibility is maintained or enhanced. There follows a series of design elements which could be incorporated into road design. It must be recognised that there will be essential differences between the design of road safety features on existing roads and new build roads. Good design will be built into new roads whereas there may be a need to superimpose retrospectively features on existing roads which for financial and practical reasons would not be consistent with the layout of a new build. Traffic calming measures Research has shown that human error is the largest single contributing factor in road accidents and that vehicle speed is a significant factor in about one third of accidents. Traffic calming is considered as a major element along with speed limits, education and enforcement in influencing human behaviour, vehicle speeds and the number of road accidents. photo In Europe many countries, notably Germany and The Netherlands, have invested heavily in urban traffic calming schemes over the last two decades and Britain has been able to gain valuable knowledge from these continental projects. The main objectives of traffic calming include: * improvement of street safety; * reduce road accidents; * discourage the use of unsuitable routes by heavy vehicles and through traffic; * improvement of the street environment; * improvement of conditions for vulnerable road users; * reduce noise, d

Since 2000, traffic accidents have increased 15% every year.

To improve road safety in Cambodia through:

Helmet wearing promotion

Since 2002 WHO has collaborated with Handicap International, the Cambodian Ministry of Health, the Cambodian Red Cross and Red Crescent Society and a number of other partners to promote helmet wearing and provide information to the public in Cambodia. The project has five main activities:

* supporting development of an integrated road traffic injury data system, initially developed for Phnom Penh but has been expanded to the 24 provinces of Cambodia;
* supporting a campaign on helmet wearing;
* collecting data on rates of helmet use in Phnom Penh, the capital city of Cambodia;
* supporting the implementation of a recently launched national road safety plan of action; and
* giving input into the creation of a law on the mandatory use of helmets.

The initiative encourages United Nations agencies, government departments and nongovernmental organizations to adopt, enforce and monitor helmet-wearing policies among their staff. A nation-wide media campaign using a television spot is going on in the country to promote the use of helmets among the public.

This is a collaborative project involving a number of agencies, in particular Handicap International, as well as the Cambodian Ministry of Health, and the Cambodian Red Cross and Red Crescent. There is strong political support and commitment to road safety in Cambodia. In June 2006, the Prime Minister Hun Sen of Cambodia chaired an important workshop on the improvement of road safety in Cambodia, organized by the Ministry of Interior and in which WHO and Handicap International participated.

Background and road safety situation

Cambodia has a population of 14.1 million people and a gross domestic product of US$ 6.2 billion. Motorcycles are an important mode of transport in Cambodia. Motorcycle riders and/or their passengers are frequent casualties of road traffic collisions. In Phnom Penh, the capital city of Cambodia, about 89% of fatal collisions involve motorcycles and 57% of cases sustained head injuries.

Unfortunately, helmet use is low among the motorcycle users although we know that helmets are effective in preventing head injuries and/or reducing their severity. A ministerial road safety committee has been established in Cambodia to address road safety. A new traffic law was approved by the council of ministers in December 2005.

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Youth and road safety July 2006 Kolap Hul, Youth Coordinator, Cambodia Red Cross In 2005, the Road Safety Project of the Cambodian Red Cross was implemented eight schools in the capital city, Phnom Penh, with 400 CRC Youth received training and helmets. In 2006, the Cambodian Red Cross Youth Program has expanded the Road Safety Project, Road Safety Begins with Me, to Battambang Province, the second largest province in Cambodia. This province has the third highest number of road accidents in Cambodia, according to 2004 Road Traffic Accident and Victim Information System Report. Humanitarian crisis Road safety is fast becoming a humanitarian crisis in Cambodia, with fatality and injury rates twice the regional average. Youth account for almost half of all traffic casualties. The volume of traffic is expected to rise exponentially over the next decade. Due to these alarming statistics, the CRCYP identified, in consultation with students in the city, a clear need to intervene to create greater road safety awareness among youth. CRCYP believes that in order to influence others to change their behaviors on the road, the youth must become role models within their schools, families and communities. The project has two components; road safety workshops in high schools, and city-wide campaigns designed to raise awareness among youth through parades and performances. Training As a first step, CRC Youth Advisors in four high schools in Battambang received road safety training. Next, the Youth Advisors facilitated training to 175 CRC Youth through a five-day youth camp from June 30 to July 4, 2006. The training included information on the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, the seven Fundamental Principles, CRC Youth Programme Policy, First Aid, Road Safety Laws and Regulations, and a Road Safety Simulation Course. After the training, all facilitators and participants receive helmets. A social side During the training, the youth were able to interact with one another thro