Millions of Young Lives Lost Without Global Road Safety Investment,

20 June 2022

Almost 12 million serious injuries to children and youth can be prevented between now and 2050 if proven road safety interventions are implemented across 77 low- and middle-income countries, according to new modelling by the Victoria University Melbourne’s Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, in a new study commissioned by the FIA Foundation.

The study,  Development of the Investment Case to Reduce Road Traffic Injuries among Adolescents, examines how proven road safety interventions introduced at scale in the 77 countries could prevent death and serious injury to youth aged 10 to 24 between now and 2050. Findings include:

• 11.7 million serious injuries to children and youth could be prevented;
• 1.9 million child and youth deaths could be averted;
• Economic returns on safety investments would be at least threefold, and in some countries would deliver up to fifty-fold returns.

The study focused in detail on three case studies with projections up to 2030, the deadline year for a UN target to halve road traffic deaths and serious injuries: Tanzania, Vietnam, and Colombia. 

In Tanzania, the impact was particularly compelling: implementing the full set of recommended interventions would reduce youth deaths by 58% and serious injuries 59% by 2030 with a combined benefit‐cost ratio (BCR) of 38.3.

In Vietnam, implementation would cut youth death by 61.1% and serious injuries by 56.6% by 2030, with a fatality BCR of 3.7 and 26.6 when combining death and serious injuries.

Colombia, which has made significant progress on road safety, could achieve a further 53% reduction in adolescent road traffic fatalities by 2030 if it implemented all interventions. This would deliver a 1.7 BCR for fatalities, rising to 4.9 when serious injuries are included.