Road safety strategies have traditionally focused on changing road-user behaviour, aiming to reduce human error to improve road safety. These strategies emphasise individual responsibility and seek to reduce crashes through awareness campaigns and strict penalties. While they do promote road safety, their efficacy is limited beyond a certain point.
Recognising the limitations of traditional strategies, the Swedish government adopted Vision Zero in the 1990s. This approach reframes individual responsibility and road-user error, not as the sole cause, but within a causal chain of events that the system should mitigate. This new approach, called the Safe System Approach, has since been adopted worldwide and now forms the basis for the new Global Plan for the Decade of Action on Road Safety 2021-2030.
The Safe System Approach recognises that humans make mistakes, and it is the responsibility of road-traffic professionals to create the right conditions for road users to comply with set rules for safe travel behaviour. By placing less emphasis solely on road-user error, the focus is shifted to identifying and implementing effective countermeasures that reduce the risk of crashes and to addressing systemic failures in the causal chain.
In other words, under this approach, we no longer endeavour to create that ‘perfect’ road user. Instead, we aim to minimise the consequences of human error, ensuring that human error does not result in death or serious injury.
Guiding Principles of Safe System Approach
- People make mistakes. The transport system needs to accommodate human error and unpredictability.
- The human body is vulnerable to injury. The impact forces resulting from a collision must therefore be limited to prevent fatal or serious injury.
- Individuals must act responsibly and with care. A shared responsibility exists between those who design, build, manage and use roads and vehicles to prevent crashes from causing serious injury or death and to provide effective post-crash care.
- All parts of the system must work in sync. Road users must still be protected even when if one part of the system fails.
How the Safe System Approach Differs from Traditional Approaches:
Traditional approaches often focus on blaming the individual, emphasizing enforcement and education. The Safe System, however, emphasises:
- Systemic Design: Designing roads and vehicles to reduce the severity of crashes, not just prevent them.
- Safe Speeds: Implementing speed limits that align with the road environment and human tolerance.
- Safe Roads: Building infrastructure that minimises crash risk, such as roundabouts, barriers, and pedestrian crossings.
- Safe Vehicles: Promoting vehicles with advanced safety features.
- Safe Road Users: Promoting safe road user behaviours through education and enforcement within the context of a safe system.
- Post-Crash Care: Ensuring rapid and effective emergency response.