Current levels of road trauma should not be accepted as the inevitable price to pay for road transport. Technological advances will open up many new options in the near future: many are already at the prototype stage. All safety improvements involve some form of cost to the community, though in many cases objectively measurable economic costs are not the limiting factor. As with past successful safety improvements, the "price tag" attached to many of the options now available is the sacrifice of some of the fun, freedom, convenience, control and autonomy that has traditionally been associated with driving. It is not inherently irrational to value fun, convenience or other psychological benefits as trade-offs for safety, provided the choice is explicit, and the consequences are well understood. Ideally, choices will be re-evaluated in the light of new evidence about the options available, and their consequences. This paper discusses some of the options and choices we now face as a community, and outlines some recent research results which throw new light on some of these options. (Author/publisher) For the covering entry of this conference, please see ITRD abstract no. E206108.
Samenvatting