In many countries of the world, motorization rates and the demand for mobility have grown very rapidly while road and transport infrastructures as well as social structures were not developing at the same pace. Complex safety problems have thus been generated, calling for preventive measures of all nature (adapting infrastructure and transport to the growing demand, optimizing the modal split, educating the road-users, etc.). Meanwhile, resources available for the task are scarce. Optimal resource allocation requires that preventive programmes should bring solutions to the real problems and include only the measures which are the most promising and feasible. Integrated safety management is one way to reach the goal as it allows choices to be made between remedial measures of different natures, based on a comprehensive safety diagnosis, as well as coordination of the implementation of measures designed to strengthen each other. Although integrated road safety management has become a commonly accepted concept in industrialized countries, we have to recognize that, until now, it has only been attempted in a few places and seldom been conducted to the end, part of the problem being the type of organization required for decision-making and implementation, which usually implies deep changes in the national administrative systems. We propose in this chapter, to describe a comprehensive methodology, which in our view should contribute to improve safety management procedures, to explain why we wish to promote such an integrated approach, and to identify the main requirements for road safety management organization. (A)
Abstract