The SWOV Institute for Road Safety Research has analysed road safety trends in the province of North Brabant, in comparison with the rest of The Netherlands. The increased lack of safety on roads in this province, and elsewhere in The Netherlands, is a matter of concern. SWOV has provided cornerstones for a Brabant Policy Plan on Road Safety. This plan will take the form of a long-term plan issued by the Provincial Organisation for Road Safety (POV) in North Brabant for the 1996-2000 period. The POV is a platform which brings together government and non-governmental organisations. The POV partners wish to establish an `inherently safe' traffic and transport system in the province. The plan contains a large number of measures which the POV partners will be implementing: (1) Discussions will be held with spatial planners and road planners in order to establish favourable conditions for road safety at an early stage; (2) Different road types will be classified, according to use; (3) The road network must be adapted to the abilities and limitations of road users; (4) The road users' behaviour demonstrates the need for a stricter enforcement of statutory regulations; and (5) much of the POV's policy will have to be developed by local authorities following the decentralisation of traffic safety policy.
Samenvatting