London Launch of Decade of Action to save five million lives

12 May 2011

Professionals from more than 100 private sector organisations, including vehicle manufacturers, the insurance, road safety and public health sectors came together for the first time with Philip Hammond, Secretary of State for Transport and Lord Robertson, chairman of the Commission for Global Road Safety - for the London launch of the Global Decade of Action for Road Safety.

The event organized in partnership with PACTS united many RoadSafe members and Driving for Better Business Champions with Government agencies, Police bodies and the British Medical Association at which each made a public commitment to make Britain’s roads safe over the next decade.

The event picked up the five pillars of action in the global plan:
Road safety management
• Safer roads and mobility
• Safer vehicles
• Safer road users
• Post-crash response

The RAC Foundation launched a new report that demonstrates how, in the UK, knife and gun crime among youths makes headlines. Yet between the ages of 15 to 24 years, young people are 17 times more likely to die in a road traffic collision than from violent assault. They are also 4 times more likely to die from a road traffic accident than from drug, alcohol or other substance poisoning. For the 10-14 age group 12% of all deaths are attributable to road traffic accidents. For 15-19 year olds the figure is 25% and for 20-24 year olds the figure is 18%.

Lord Robertson explained the need for action and Philip Hammond announced the UK’s new Strategic Framework for Road Safety.

Later that day Prime Minister David Cameron joined F1 stars Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button to to launch the Decade of Action together with schoolchildren in a Downing Street photocall.