TRANSPORT NOTES ROAD SAFETY TASKFORCE OPERATIONAL GUIDANCE FOR WORLD BANK STAFF THE WORLD BANK, WASHINGTON, DC Transport Note No. TN-1 April 2004 Implementing the Recommendations of The World Report on Road Traffic Injury Prevention Tony Bliss `The World Report on Road Traffic Injury Prevention'jointly issued on World Health Day 2004 by the World Health Organisation and the World Bankhighlights the growing public health burden of road deaths and injuries in low and middle-income countries. It also makes a powerful case for concerted and urgent action to address the problem, as a global development priority. This Note summarizes the findings of the `World Report' and provides guidelines to assist with the implementation of its recommendations. These will require both countries and donor agencies to substantially scale-up and refocus their activities, with a strong emphasis on managing for results. A country capacity review is a mandatory first step to build a multisectoral framework for dialogue between counterparts in different ministries, between Bank staff working in different sectors, and between Bank staff and their client agencies. The findings of the review should be used to prepare an investment strategy for short, medium and long-term actions required to build a sustainable safety management capacity. It should include interventions to urgently target high-risk roads and achieve rapid reductions in deaths and injuries. The absence of reliable death and injury data must and need not impede immediate action, but the building of countrywide data systems should be included as part of the strategy. Dialogue must also be initiated with all international stakeholders to foster a global partnership that can assist and accelerate the process of low and middle-income countries building their scientific, technological and managerial capacities to prepare and implement innovative and cost-effective road safety programs. FINDINGS OF THE WORLD REPORT ON ROAD Table 1: Predicted Road Traffic Fatalities TRAFFIC INJURY PREVENTION % Change The World Health Organization (WHO) and the World World Bank Region 2000 - 2020 Bank jointly issued The World Report on Road Traffic Injury Prevention1 on World Health Day 2004, which was South Asia 144% dedicated by the WHO to the improvement of global East Asia & Pacific 80% road safety. Sub-Saharan África 80% The World Report sets out the most complete global data available on deaths and injuries from road crashes. Middle East & North Africa 68% It also presents projected future outcomes worldwide, if Latin America & Caribbean 48% measures are not urgently taken to prevent them. These deaths and injuries already create unacceptable global Europe & Central Asia 18% public health, social and economic development losses. Every year an estimated 1.2 million people are killed and Sub-total 83% up to 50 million more people are injured or disabled on High-income countries -28% the world's roads. Global total 66% World Bank projections indicate that global road fatalities will increase by more than 65 percent between By 2020, road deaths and injuries are predicted to be the years 2000 and 2020, unless intensified safety the third leading contributor to the global burden of interventions are implemented, with this trend varying disease and injury.3 Low and middle-income countries across regions of the world. Fatalities are predicted to already bear about 90 percent of the current burden of increase by more than 80 percent in low and middle- road deaths and injuries and they will experience the income countries, but decrease by nearly 30 percent in greatest growth in casualty rates over this period. A high-income countries (Table 1)2. large proportion of crash victims in these countries will continue to be their more vulnerable road users such as pedestrians and cyclists. 1Peden M. et al, eds. 2004. The World Report on Road Traffic Injury Prevention. World Health Organization, 3 Murray C.J.L., Lopez A.D., eds. 1996. The Global Geneva. Burden of Disease: A Comprehensive Assessment of 2Kopits E., Cropper M. Traffic Fatalities and Economic Mortality and Disability From Diseases, Injuries and Risk Growth. 2003. Policy Research Working Paper Number Factors in 1990 and Projected to 2020. Harvard 3035. The World Bank, Washington, DC. University Press, Boston. Page 2 Transport Note No. TN-1 April 2004 The World Report highlights road safety as a social considerably enhanced by strong and sustained political equity issue. Road crashes have a disproportionate support for the initiatives they promote. impact on the poor who experience limited access to post-crash emergency care and face costs and loss of 2. Assess the problem, policies and institutional income that can push families into poverty. Crude settings relating to road traffic injury and the estimates of the economic costs of road deaths and capacity for road traffic injury prevention in each injuries put them at an average of 1 percent of GNP for country. This recommendation underscores the low-income countries, compared with 1.5 percent for complexity of managing for safety across the road middle-income countries and 2 percent for high-income transport network and the vital role played by reliable countries. These costs could be far higher in low income data and effective institutional structures in sustaining countries, especially if the social costs of pain and safety improvements. Simple, cost-effective data suffering were fully accounted for. systems that are consistent with international standards for recording and classifying road deaths and injuries A key message of the World Report is that the costs of should be established. Institutional capacity to road crashes can be substantially avoided, because implement effective injury prevention measures at a successful programs in high-income countries over the country level must also be appraised. last thirty years have demonstrated that road deaths and injuries are predictable and can be prevented. 3. Prepare a national road safety strategy and plan However, investment in the prevention of road crashes of action. This recommendation emphasizes the and injuries is currently not commensurate with its multisectoral and multidisciplinary dimensions of a growing public health priority in low and middle-income national road safety strategy. It must address the safety countries. Research and development programs are of all road users and engage all stakeholders across inadequate and the implementation of cost-effective government, the private sector, nongovernmental safety measures is not widespread. organizations, the media and the general public. A national road safety strategy should also be linked to The World Report emphasizes that road safety is a strategies in other sectors and set ambitious but realistic responsibility shared by government, industry, safety targets, complemented by a national action plan nongovernmental organizations and international setting out specific interventions to achieve them. agencies, with participation by people from many disciplines and the wider community. 4. Allocate financial and human resources to address the problem. This recommendation highlights It also emphasizes the complexity and hazardous nature the importance of cost-benefit analysis in setting of the road transport system, which must be understood expenditure priorities for road traffic injury prevention, as a whole and designed and operated to compensate drawing on the evaluation of interventions by countries for human vulnerability and fallibility. In this regard, worldwide. To achieve safety targets, new funding Vision Zero in Sweden and Sustainable Safety in the sources may have to be found for the required level of Netherlands are promoted by the World Report as investments. Priority will also have to be given to leading examples of good practice. training programs across a range of disciplines, to build the skills required to develop and implement national The importance of establishing reliable data systems for road safety strategies. Participation in global and road safety planning and decision-making is stressed, regional training networks and international conferences but their poor quality in low and middle-income can contribute to this process and further strengthen countries is not seen as impeding immediate action, country capacity. because much can be achieved by simply adapting and applying proven safety practices. 5. Implement specific actions to prevent road traffic crashes, minimize injuries and their The World Report invites governments to assess the consequences and evaluate the impact of these current status of road safety in their respective countries actions. This recommendation summarizes the range of and makes a set of recommendations to be used as `good practice' interventions that could be considered by flexible guidelines to assist this process. Low and all countries. Specific country-based actions should be middle-income countries lacking sufficient resources to based on sound evidence, be culturally appropriate, fully apply these recommendations are encouraged to form part of a national road safety strategy and be seek partnerships with international organizations and evaluated for their effectiveness. other entities to assist their implementation. 6. Support the development of national capacity and international cooperation. This recommendation WORLD REPORT RECOMMENDATIONS calls for a substantial scaling up of international efforts to build a partnership focused on strengthening capacity 1. Identify a lead agency in government to guide at the country level to deal with the growing road safety the national road safety effort. This recommendation crisis. United Nations agencies, nongovernmental stresses the importance of institutional leadership which organizations, multinational corporations, philanthropic derives from a designated legal authority to make foundations and donor countries and agencies all have decisions, control resources and coordinate the efforts of an important role to play in increasing support for global all participating sectors of government. Lead agencies road safety to levels provided for other health problems can take different institutional forms, but they must be of comparable magnitude. Leadership, coordination and adequately funded and publicly accountable for their an ongoing process engaging relevant government performance. They must also actively engage and ministers will be required to develop and endorse a collaborate with all groups in society that can contribute global plan of action that is consistent with other global to improved safety outcomes. Their effectiveness is initiatives such as the Millennium Development Goals. Page 3 Transport Note No. TN-1 April 2004 IMPLEMENTATION GUIDELINES overcoming country capacity weaknesses, while seeking to identify specific operations which could rapidly Managing For Results improve road safety results. Finally, priority areas for building a supportive global The recommendations of the World Report focus on partnership are sketched out. It is intended that these safety management issues at the country level, will help shape the agenda for more in-depth dialogue emphasizing agency accountability for results, with international stakeholders, by highlighting the areas multisectoral collaboration, capacity building and the of support that require scaling up and harmonization. creation of a supporting global partnership. This focus is well aligned with the World Bank's results Country Capacity Checklist management agenda which seeks sustained improvements in country development outcomes Before preparing country road safety investment through stronger partnerships and systematic strategies and operations it is important to conduct a management attention to results at all stages of the quick and systematic review of national safety development cycle: planning, implementation and management capacity. completion. Such a review may also be required at a regional, Managing for road safety results requires action to provincial or city level, depending on country be taken at three levels: in countries, where the arrangements and the nature of Bank operations under results are to be achieved; within the Bank, to be a consideration. more effective agency; and across development agencies, for greater impact through collective A country capacity review is a mandatory first step action. in setting out an integrated multisectoral framework for dialogue between Bank staff and At the country level the focus must be on supporting their country counterparts on potential road safety clients to better specify desired road safety outcomes in investments. national strategies, set realistic goals and develop more effective monitoring and evaluation systems. Capacity review findings should be reflected in Country Assistance Strategies and related sector strategies and Within the Bank the road safety results focus must be projects aligned to contribute to desired country results. strengthened in Country Assistance Strategies. Sector strategies ­ particularly Transport and Health ­ must be Safety management systems are undeniably better aligned to contribute to country results and complex, but their capacity can be readily individual road safety operations must be given a reviewed across three best practice dimensions: stronger results focus. their focus on results, their safety interventions and their implementation arrangements. Across development agencies the emphasis must be on fostering a well-focused partnership for the management The following sections provide quick and simple of road safety results, including harmonization of checklists to guide such a review. country-level reporting and performance evaluation. Results focus Capacity building provides the foundation that underpins these three areas of work. Success will be determined Key questions include: by the effectiveness of measures taken to: q What data are readily available to identify road q build the capacity of countries to design and deaths and injuries? implement road safety strategies and measure their q Which road users face the biggest risk of being results; killed and injured in the road transport system? q build the capacity across the Bank to align and q What is officially considered to be an acceptable and coordinate sector strategies and operations with achievable level of safety for all road users? desired country results; and q Have national and provincial targets been set for q build the capacity of the Bank and other improved safety performance? development agencies to collaborate more q Which agencies are responsible for achieving this effectively and harmonize for greater results. level of safety and how are they held to account for the performance achieved? These priorities are addressed in the following guidelines prepared to give operational guidance to Bank staff in It is important to probe the risks faced by different road their consideration and implementation of the World user groups (drivers, passengers, pedestrians, cyclists Report recommendations. etc), assisted by available data from highway agencies, police, hospitals and other sources. A country capacity checklist is provided to assist operational staff and their counterparts make a quick It is also important to locate and rank where possible but comprehensive assessment of national preparedness those sections of the road network with the highest to successfully manage road safety results. concentrations of deaths and injuries, across the hierarchy of urban roads (for example, residential, Guidelines are then provided to assist the preparation of distributor and freeway) and the hierarchy of inter-urban a Bank/donor supported investment strategy. This roads (for example, national and provincial). should aim to address the long-term process of Page 4 Transport Note No. TN-1 April 2004 Examining available statistics for similar types of roads Interventions may highlight regional or other discrepancies between the number of crashes and the percentage of those that Key questions include: result in injury or death. Depending on injury reporting rates, higher death ratios may indicate weaknesses in q Have comprehensive safety standards and rules road design and construction, or in emergency been set for roads, vehicles and road users? responses, including police, fire/rescue and emergency q Are compliance regimes in place to ensure medical services (EMS). Examining the location of crash adherence to identified safety standards and rules? deathsat the scene or in hospitalmay also point to q Do the identified standards and rules and related weaknesses in EMS or fire/rescue services. compliance regimes clearly address the safety priorities of high-risk road user groups? Where data is deficient or simply unavailable, extensive q How favorably do identified standards and rules and agency, industry and community consultations may related compliance regimes compare with need to be conducted to identify user groups most at international best practice? risk and locate hazardous sections of the network. Interventions should be reviewed within a framework The best starting point for these discussions is within the that acknowledges their systematic nature, as set out in health sector, particularly with the medical staff of Table 3. Interventions address the safe design and hospitals that attend to crash victims. operation of the road network, or the conditions under which vehicles and road users can safely use it; and The issue of acceptable and achievable levels of safety they set specific standards and rules for this safety and and related responsibilities and accountabilities must be aim to secure compliance with them. addressed at the highest agency and ministerial levels, especially across the Transport and Health sectors. Close attention should be paid to the safety standards that are set for road network design and the extent to In this dialogue it is important to identify the scale of which they are clearly defined within a hierarchy of the national health loss incurred by road crashes, roads and respond to identified road user risks. compared to other causes of death and injury in the country concerned. It is also important to review if safety audits are conducted to ensure compliance with these standards Targets for improved safety performance can take and if network surveys are regularly carried out for various forms as described in Table 2. safety maintenance and hazard identification purposes. Table 2: Safety Targets Likewise, safety standards and related compliance regimes for vehicles and road users should be Comment thoroughly appraised. Final Final outcomes consist of social costs, Vehicle safety standards are important for vehicle users Outcomes fatalities and serious injuries. They are what the country seeks to avoid. and vulnerable road users. Procedures for ensuring Targets can be expressed in absolute compliance with them, as a prerequisite for entry to the terms and also in terms of rates per vehicle fleet, should be reviewed. These standards can relate to active safety features (e.g. lighting and capita, vehicle and volume of travel. conspicuity) and passive safety features (e.g. side and Intermediate Intermediate outcomes are not desired frontal impact protection, pedestrian and cyclist Outcomes for themselves but for what they protection, and safety belts). entailbetter final outcomes. They include average traffic speeds, the Standards promulgated by the world's leading vehicle proportion of drunk drivers in fatal and safety jurisdictionsUSA, Japan and Europeprovide a serious injury crashes, seatbelt- useful benchmark for assessing country policies. wearing rates, helmet-wearing rates, the physical condition of the road The extent to which driver licensing standards take network and the standard of the account of the higher crash risks of novice drivers and vehicle fleet. older drivers should also be reviewed. Outputs Outputs represent physical deliverables, for instance the number Police enforcement of safety standards and rules must of police patrols, or alternatively they be carefully examined. Particular attention should be can correspond to milestones showing paid to police operational practices targeting unsafe a specific task has been completed. behaviors like speeding, drink-driving and the non- wearing of safety belts and helmets. If reliable fatality and injury data and information on the likely effectiveness of specific safety interventions is Likewise, police enforcement of the safety of commercial available, national and provincial targets for managing transport operationsboth freight and passengermust results can be calculated and set at all of these levels. be reviewed. However, where such data and information is deficient, It is most important to assess if the overall scale of output targets reflecting the degree of road safety effort police enforcement initiatives are sufficient to ensure may have to suffice, ideally supplemented by systematic effective compliance. Experience in best practice surveys of intermediate outcomes. jurisdictions indicates that about 20 percent of total police budgets are dedicated to road policing activities. Page 5 Transport Note No. TN-1 April 2004 The extent to which road user education and awareness Implementation arrangements must be scrutinized and campaigns are designed to support police enforcement related to agency and stakeholder responsibilities and initiatives should also be appraised. accountabilities for managing road safety results. In particular, monitoring and evaluation systems and safety promotion initiatives must be reviewed in this context. Table 3: Classification of Interventions Standards and Compliance Preparing Safety Investment Strategies and Rules Related Operations Design and Standards and Compliance The findings of safety management capacity operation of rules cover road interventions aim reviewsexpressed in terms of results focus, the road design, to make road interventions and implementation arrangementswill network. construction and builders and provide a platform to prepare safety investment maintenance and operators, the strategies and related operations. related activities vehicle and such as roadside transport industry Although different low and middle-income countries will Conditions emergency and road users have relative strengths and weaknesses, it is likely that of entry and medical services. adhere to safety their safety management capacity will be found to be exit to the They also govern standards and deficient, as reflected by the findings and road how the road rules, using a recommendations of the World Report and World Bank network for network is to be combination of experience over the last two decades. vehicles and used by setting education, road users. speed limits, enforcement and In low and middle-income countries a road safety results vehicle standards incentives. focus is usually absent. Targets are rarely set and little and vehicle and is known about the effectiveness of interventions, given road user the absence of reliable performance data. Agencies are licensing rarely held to account for safety results that fall within requirements. their sphere of responsibility and influence. Implementation arrangements Deficiencies are also evident in safety interventions. Standards and rules governing the safety of roads, Key questions include: vehicles and road users are often fragmented and not based on best practice. Likewise compliance regimes are q Are funding mechanisms established, sufficient and often ineffective and unduly reliant on education alone sustainable? to ensure that standards are met and rules abided by. q Are legislative instruments well matched to the road Enforcement lacks purposeful direction and incentives to safety task? comply are weak. Poor road user, agency and industry q Are interventions being coordinated to maximize safety performance can be readily observed in the road efficiency and effectiveness? environment, as can the deaths and injuries that result. q Are interventions monitored, evaluated and adjusted accordingly? Institutional implementation arrangements remain the q Are the government, business and community biggest impediment to progress. Funding and legislation responsibilities to ensure a safe road system being are usually poorly matched to the task of improving road actively promoted? safety nationwide. Coordination arrangements are often ineffective and hampered by limited agency Identifying and quantifying total funding allocated to accountability for achieving safety results. Monitoring agencies for road safety can be difficult, particularly and evaluation of safety performance is at best when it is embedded in broader sector budgets. superficial. Safety promotion and programs are often However, it is important to seek high-level confirmation confined to special days of the year and are usually of budget sources, processes and levels. focused on road user responsibilities alone. Specialist skills will most likely be required to review This brief overview illustrates the likely situation road safety legislation. This will depend on the in many low and middle-income countries. complexities of the legal codes and the extent to which However, it does not substitute for a they have been structured or restructured to consolidate comprehensive country review, which should be previous legislation. Road safety legislation typically undertaken using the capacity checklist provided addresses road, vehicle and user safety standards and in the previous sections. rulesand related compliancebut it has often evolved over time, without adequate cross-referencing. An important function of such a review is to officially reach a consensus on country capacity National coordinating bodies may exist, but unless their weaknesses and how to best overcome them. membership includes agencies fully accountable and funded for road safety results, experience suggests they It should be recognized that many identified deficiencies will be ineffective. In best practice countries these cannot be corrected quickly, especially the building of bodies are usually the extension of accountable agencies effective implementation arrangements, which in best that `own' and use them as platforms for mobilizing practice countries have evolved over a long period of resources and coordinating multisectoral partnerships, in motorization and successive governance reforms. pursuit of agreed results. Page 6 Transport Note No. TN-1 April 2004 Capacity review findings should be used to Road types prepare a safety investment strategy to guide multi-sectoral road safety operations. Different operational responses will be required for different types of roads, reflecting their different The safety investment strategy should be flexible institutional settings and traffic and land use functions. and address identified capacity weaknesses. It should set out the short, medium and long-term City and neighborhood-wide operations may be actions required at a country level to build a considered as a comprehensive response to improving sustainable safety management capacity. safety in urban areas where people live, work and shop. Inter-city and urban corridor operations may be It should also identify immediate and urgent road considered, where excessive speeding contributes to safety interventions for more detailed preparation, greater fatality rates. targeting high-risk roads to achieve rapid reductions in deaths and injuries. Urban areas can be administratively more homogenous than inter-city corridors and may be suited to area-wide An absence of reliable safety data must and need safety operations that can also contribute to the not impede immediate action. However, the achievement of urban development strategies seeking building of countrywide data systems should be better integration of traffic and land use functions, to one of the medium-term investment priorities. improve overall urban amenity. The following sections provide brief guidelines to assist In high-speed environments priority must be given to the preparation of Bank road safety operations. the creation of a sustainable police enforcement capacity, by developing specialized highway patrols. Sectors Instruments All relevant sectors must be engaged in the preparation and implementation of road safety operations: especially A range of Bank instruments (e.g. policy dialogue, the Transport, Health, Education and Justice sectors. technical assistance, and investment and program loans) are available to assist the development, preparation and Given the strong emphasis on institutional capacity implementation of country road safety strategies and building and results management, alignment with public related operations. sector reform objectives may also require consideration and be beneficial in specific operations. The current approach of treating road safety operations as a minor sub-component of considerably larger road Scale infrastructure projects must be reconsidered and opportunities for stand-alone road safety operations Ideally, operations should be of sufficient scale and actively explored with country counterparts. intensity to contribute positively to the long-term process of country capacity building for sustainable Consideration should be given to the potential safety, while achieving measurable road safety results in application of Sector Wide Approaches as an effective the short-term. This latter objective can be achieved by means to support country-led programs and special targeting high-risk situations and deploying sufficient lending instruments such as Adaptable Program Loans resources to make an impact. and Learning and Innovation Loans. As country circumstances may not always permit Whatever the funding arrangements, road safety investment in large-scale programs or projects, more operations must be founded on an agreed investment modest operations may have to be considered. However, strategy that aims to build a sustainable safety building capacity and achieving results must remain the management capacity and have a strong results focus. If operational focus. these conditions are not met, road safety projects or components embedded in larger infrastructure projects Sequencing are unlikely to achieve sustainable success. Country circumstances will also determine how the Interventions implementation of the long-term investment strategy can best be launched and sequenced. Planning for road safety operations can draw on successful measures taken in best practice countries and In countries where the results focus and implementation adapt them to country circumstances. Table 4 provides arrangements are stronger, large-scale demonstration some examples of proven cost-effective interventions projects may be appropriate to launch the investment that have been well canvassed in the World Report. strategy and rapidly generate the success needed to engender greater momentum for the longer-term. Performance measures In countries where the results focus and implementation The results achieved by road safety operations must be arrangements are weaker, smaller projects may be measured by a combination of final outcomes, appropriate to first build the management tools required intermediate outcomes and outputs, or in some to overcome these weaknesses. instances just by outputs alone, where no measurable linkage with outcomes can be made (Table 2). Page 7 Transport Note No. TN-1 April 2004 to achieve more effective collaboration and greater Table 4: Examples of Cost-Effective Interventions harmonization of future road safety initiatives. General Interventions Theme Dialogue must be initiated with all international stakeholders to foster and focus a global Road Safe design of new infrastructure, to partnership that can assist and accelerate the Environment meet the safety requirements of all process of low and middle-income countries its potential road users. building their scientific, technological and Retro-fitting of low cost safety design managerial capacities to prepare and implement features to reduce injury severity cost-effective road safety programs. (e.g. median dividers on rural roads; separation and calming for motorcy- The priority areas to be addressed in more depth clists, cyclists and pedestrians; traffic by this dialogue include the global scaling up and roundabouts at risky junctions). harmonizing of related technical assistance, funding, education and training, knowledge Systematic safety audits of road transfer and research and development. designs to ensure compliance with safety standards and regulations. NEXT STEPS Systematic reviews to identify road hazards and remedial treatments. The recommendations of the World Report will take time Systematic maintenance of all safety and substantial resources to be successfully features of the road environment, implemented. The guidelines provided in this Note are especially signs, markings and designed to assist Bank staff in the Transport, Health, pavement surface quality. Education and Justice sectors and country counterparts with their contributions to this process. Speed General deterrence-based police Management enforcement and education to ensure Further information and tools will be disseminated, as compliance with speed limits. they become available. Safety Belts General deterrence-based police Planned products include: And Helmets enforcement and education to ensure compliance with front/back/child q More detailed checklists and operational guidelines, restraints and cycle/motorcycle based on further regional and country experiences helmet standards and rules. and analyses. Drink Driving General deterrence-based police q A resource guide to international road safety enforcement and education to ensure partners and stakeholders and an appraisal of their compliance with legal alcohol limits. current and planned services including technical assistance, funding, education and training, Novice Graduated driver licensing system to knowledge transfer and research. Drivers control and reduce the exposure of q Specific guidelines setting out clear strategic and young drivers to risk. operational responsibilities across Bank sectors and related coordination arrangements. Vehicle Safety Harmonization with international best q A comprehensive assessment of Bank instruments practice and systematic inspection and their applicability to country-based road safety and certification to ensure industry investment strategies and operations. compliance with standards and rules. Commercial General deterrence-based police Vehicles enforcement and education to ensure compliance with safe loads, driving TO LEARN MORE AND PROVIDE INPUT hours and vehicle standards. To learn more about planned developments of Child Safety Traffic safety education in the core further information and tools and to provide school curriculum. related input on country issues contact: Emergency Pre-hospital care and victim recovery Tony Bliss Medical targeted to high-risk corridors. Senior Road Safety Specialist Services Transport and Urban Development Department The World Bank, 1818 H Street NW Washington DC 20433, USA Fostering a global partnership Email: abliss@worldbank.org Successful implementation of the World Report's recommendations will require capacity building in the Transport Notes are available on-line at: countries concerned and across Bank units to ensure http://www.worldbank.org/transport/publicat/tr- alignment of sector strategies and operations with notes.htm desired road safety results. Urban Notes are available on-line at: The success of this venture will also require capacity http://www.worldbank.org/urban/upgrading/urban- building across the Bank and its development partners, notes.htm Page 8 Transport Note No. TN-1 April 2004 ANNEX 1 Vietnam Case Study The Vietnam Road Safety Project, currently being prepared by the Government of Vietnam for World Bank funding, provides a useful case study to illustrate the application of the implementation guidelines provided in this Note. Country capacity checklist A quick and systematic review of national safety management capacity was conducted in Vietnam to appraise its safety results focus, interventions and implementation arrangementsand strengths and weaknesses were identified. Road safety was clearly a high government priority in Vietnam, as reflected in their National Policy on Accident and Injury Prevention 2002 ­ 2010 and their National Program for Traffic Safety 2001 ­ 2005, which was prepared by the National Traffic Safety Committee. Modest performance targets had been set, but the basis of their derivation and means of achievability were unclear. The questions of what was an acceptable level of safety and which agencies were accountable for its achievement had barely been addressed. Systematic data on road deaths and injuries were not readily available. Interventions were fragmented and not strongly targeting the safety priorities of high-risk road user groups. Standards and rules set for the road environment, vehicles and road users were low and compliance with them poor. Implementation arrangements were weak: sustainable sources of funding, well grounded legal instruments, effective coordination, robust performance monitoring and evaluation and active promotion of shared safety responsibilities were all lacking. The review findings pointed to a growing road safety crisis, unless strong measures were urgently taken. Preparing a safety investment strategy and related operations Based on the review findings, an investment strategy was prepared to guide Bank road safety operations, with the vision that over the coming 15 years Vietnam will build a safety management system that produces best practice safety outcomes on a controllable and sustainable basis. In pursuit of this vision, the focus is on building institutional capacity across the Transport, Health, Education and Justice sectors, and creating supporting partnerships with communities, non-governmental organizations and the private sector. Short-term priorities are to take control of safety in high risk highway corridors and to prepare a national strategy for further action. Medium-term priorities are to introduce targeted results measurement and to implement safety programs systematically across the country. Long-term priorities are to establish an independent safety agency and to consolidate program delivery arrangements. In line with the Country Assistance Strategy for Vietnam, the strategy addresses the health shocks that push people into poverty or make escape from poverty more difficult, by targeting reductions in the health losses and economic inefficiencies resulting from road deaths and injuries. It aims to more sharply focus government safety initiatives and support Bank and donor operations, within an comprehensive results management framework. Integral to the strategy's design is a `break-through' process in its first phase, which will address the urgency of the safety situation in Vietnam and mobilize all partners and stakeholders whose participation is critical to the achievement of the strategy's vision. This aims to generate the knowledge, experience, momentum and success required in the face of an escalating road toll to overcome institutional inertia and the seeming indifference of road users to the risks they face on Vietnam's roads. Phase 1 of the Vietnam Road Safety Project is currently under preparation. Initially the project was being considered as a small sub-component of a large road network improvement project, but following the country capacity review its scale was substantially increased and the government then decided to prepare it as stand-alone operation. The project is multisectoral in scope and in parallel with building longer-term capacity it aims to achieve measurable road safety results in the short term. A prime focus will be the creation of "Safe Highway" demonstration corridors (located on national highways) which will pilot an integrated suite of best practice safety measures, including low cost engineering improvements, targeted police enforcement of unsafe behaviors supported by education and awareness campaigns, school based education programs, enhanced emergency medical services and related vehicle and driver licensing initiatives. The project will also support the development of a national crash reporting and analysis system. Safety results in the demonstration corridors (and control corridors) will be comprehensively monitored before, during and after the project interventions. Results monitored will include final and intermediate safety outcomes and related community attitudes. The effectiveness of interventions will be fully evaluated to create benchmarks for their future roll- out to remaining high-risk sections of the network, as envisaged for the second and third phases of the project. Fostering a global partnership International agencies are already supporting the project. The New Zealand Agency for International Development and the UK Department for International Development are funding project preparation activities and professional support to Vietnam traffic police is being provided by the New Zealand Police, as part of a prospective twinning arrangement currently under consideration by the jurisdictions concerned. The Asian Development Bank is reviewing ways to align its future activities with the Bank investment strategy and operations, as part of developing its road safety strategy for ASEAN countries. The Vietnam Red Cross, the Asia Injury Prevention Foundation and the Global Road Safety Partnership are also actively considering ways to contribute to the project.