A method for improving road safety transfer from highly motorised countries to less motorised countries

The global road toll is estimated to be about 1 million fatalities each year, with the majority occurring in less motorised countries. As these countries motorise, sometimes quite rapidly, this figure is expected to rise. The transfer of road safety knowledge and expertise from highly motorised countries to less motorised countries is advocated by international agencies such as the World Health Organisation; however, the mixed successes of road safety transfer efforts are also acknowledged. This paper presents a ‘road safety space’ model and method for improving road safety transfer, based on research conducted in two Southeast Asian countries. The model recognises that road safety problems and countermeasures are influenced by factors which lie outside the immediate context, both in the recipient country and in the country in which a particular countermeasure has proven to be effective. A method is outlined for the documentation and analysis of these factors, to enable a more considered approach to road safety transfer and a greater likelihood of success. The results of case studies of the approach are presented as an example of the method in action, and ways of improving the method further are discussed.