The latest World Health Organization (WHO) report reveals that annual road traffic deaths have decreased slightly to 1.19 million per year. Despite this progress, the sobering statistic of over 2 deaths every minute and more than 3200 deaths per day highlights the urgent need for continued efforts to address road safety challenges, especially among children and young individuals aged 5 to 29 years old.
The WHO’s global status report on road safety 2023 indicates a 5% decrease in road traffic fatalities since 2010, emphasizing incremental progress in the fight against road crashes. However, the report underscores the ongoing global health crisis posed by road accidents, particularly affecting pedestrians, cyclists, and other vulnerable road users.
Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General, stresses the preventable nature of road traffic deaths, urging countries to prioritize the safety of all road users and shift towards more people-centric transport systems. Noteworthy progress has been made by some UN Member States, with 108 countries reporting a decline in road traffic-related deaths and ten countries successfully reducing fatalities by over 50%.
Inequities persist as low- and middle-income countries bear the brunt of road traffic fatalities, where the risk of death is three times higher compared to high-income countries. Vulnerable road users, including pedestrians, motorcycle riders, cyclists, and users of micro-mobility devices, account for a significant portion of these fatalities.
The report also highlights the urgent need for stronger commitments from governments globally to enact and enforce laws that promote road safety. Encouragingly, some countries have made strides in aligning their legislation with WHO best practices, but there remains ample room for improvement in enhancing road infrastructure and vehicle safety features.
As the world grapples with the impending increase in the global motor-vehicle fleet, concerted efforts are required to ensure road safety measures keep pace with this growth. The WHO report serves as a crucial benchmark for guiding actions to achieve the United Nations Decade of Action 2021–2030 target of halving road traffic deaths by 2030.
Supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies, the report sheds light on critical areas for intervention and underscores the importance of collaborative efforts to make roads safer for all individuals worldwide.