Launch: The Decade of Action for Road Safety was officially launched on Wednesday 11 May 2011. A truly global event, national and local launches in every time zone of the world were combined with one message: it is Time for Action.
Our Network: The United States is already a leader in road safety. We work with our coalitions through our pedestrian safety program (Safe Kids Walk This Way) educating parents, kids and legislators about pedestrian safety.
We also work with schools and communities to identify environmental risk factors and give out grants and work through our partnership with University of North Carolina Highway Safety Research Center to implement changes to create a safe environment.
As one of the largest child passenger safety programs, the Safe Kids "Buckle Up" program focuses on educating parents, teens, and caregivers on how to be safe in and around cars. As part of the Decade of Action, Safe Kids Buckle Up is going to continue to work with our coalitions to raise awareness about child passenger safety.
Additionally, Safe Kids will continue to educate parents, children and legislators about the importance of wearing a helmet. Safe Kids provides safety tips on safe riding practices, advocates for laws requiring children to wear helmets, and hosts community bike safety events across the country.
During the next decade our coalitions will continue to work on initiatives covering the five pillars of activity: building road safety management capacity; upgrading the safety of road infrastructure; further developing the safety of vehicles; enhancing the behavior of road users; and improving emergency services.
Their focus will be on continuing to improving road safety for children around the United States. We will be featuring some of the great work our coalitions are doing right here on our site.
We will also continue to share best practices with our coalitions and communities around the world.
About the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-2020: Most of us know someone who has been affected by a road crash, either by being injured themselves, or through suffering a bereavement or injury to a family member or friend.
Every day, around the world, 3,500 people leave home and never return because they have been suddenly, violently, killed in a road crash.
These tragic deaths and the misery and grief they cause are not inevitable. They can be prevented, if measures are taken by governments, police, health practitioners and all road users to improve safety.
The United Nations General Assembly has set the goal for the decade: "to stabilize and then reduce the forecast level of road traffic fatalities around the world" by 2020. Millions of deaths could potentially be prevented as a result.
The United Nations' Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-2020 is our opportunity to make our communities and streets safer wherever we live.
There are some symbols that unite the world: the red ribbon which brought such momentum to awareness of HIV/AIDS and the white band against global poverty. Now these are joined by a new symbol.
The Road Safety Tag is the global symbol of the movement to improve safety on the roads. It has been adopted as the official symbol for the United Nations' Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-2020, which aims to reduce road deaths and injuries across the world. Nearly 1.3 million people die every year on the world's roads, and up to 50 million are injured.
By wearing the Tag you are demonstrating your support for the Decade of Action, and your personal commitment to be safe on the road.
