The publication of the Government report "Road Safety - The Next Steps", in 1987 (see IRRD 809779), established the target of a one-third reduction in casualties by the year 2000. Following on from this initiative, the Local Authority Associations published their Road Safety Code of Good Practice which, amongst other things, recommended that highway authorities should develop Road Safety Plans for their area, the intention of the plans being to draw together all of the efforts by the authority and other bodies relating to road accident casualty reduction. Road Safety Plans produced to date vary considerably in their quality and content. Whilst it is important to recognise that plans should reflect local needs and requirements, it is clear that there is substantial demand from those responsible for producing the plans for some guidance on good practice. This paper describes a project, undertaken by Oscar Faber TPA (formerly Transportation Planning Associates) on behalf of the Department of Transport, in which all existing Road Safety Plans were reviewed and best practice identified. In addition to reviewing plans, a detailed questionnaire survey was also undertaken. Recommendations on best practice, set in the overall context of the production of Road Safety Plans, are made.
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