Implementing Israel’s national road safety policy is predicated on four key conditions: the firm commitment of the government and the Knesset to the policy; establishing a strong and independent organization with the responsibility and powers to promote the issue of road safety from a multisystem perspective and to formulate a national road safety plan; allocating a dedicated and permanent budget to enable multiyear implementation of the plan; commitment to the plan and its goals on the part of the strategic partners. On July 17, 2005, the Government of Israel decided (Decision No. 3917) to adopt and approve the principles of the Committee for the Preparation of a National Multiyear Road Safety Plan report (“the Sheinin report”). The recommendations of the Sheinin report were based on the economic feasibility of investing in road safety and focused on four aspects: goals, responsibility, independence and financial sources. The government’s decision embraced these elements, and the plan was set into motion. The National Road Safety Authority Law (Temporary Order), 5766-2006, was enacted, and pursuant to the Law, the National Road Safety Authority (“the Authority”) was established in 2007. The Authority set itself the goals of leading national road safety strategy; serving as a national information center; directing, coordinating and controlling partners’ activities towards the development of a safe driving culture, and reducing the number of traffic accidents and traffic fatalities in Israel. At the same time, there has been a large gap between the government’s decision and its actual implementation, reflected primarily in areas related to authority and budget. This situation is hindering the promotion of road safety in Israel. To advance the issue of road safety in Israel, the Authority developed a national road safety plan (“the National Plan”). The National Plan is based on the changes that have occurred in the field of road safety management in the last decade, as reflected in various plans and documents such as the Sheinin report, the National Road Safety Authority Law (Temporary Order) of 2006, the establishment of the National Road Safety Authority in 2007, the multiyear plan of the National Road Safety Authority for the years 2008-2012, and the study titled “Examination of Plans for the Promotion of Road Safety in the World’s Ten Leading Road Safety Countries.” To achieve the goals set in the plan, several preliminary steps need to be taken in the immediate term: • Strengthening the independence of the National Road Safety Authority and consolidating its authority as the leading road safety agency in Israel. • Allocating a dedicated and permanent multiyear budget to meet the requirements for implementing the program, at a minimum of NIS 550 million per year. • Approval and adoption of the plan by the Government of Israel. • Full commitment of the bodies involved in road safety to the plan, its implementation and its incorporation in the multiannual and annual work plans of those bodies, namely: the Ministry of Transport and Road Safety, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Justice, the Israel Police, the Courts Administration, the local government and local authorities, the Israel National Roads Company, the firefighting and rescue services, Magen David Adom and the third (non-profit) sector. (Author/publisher)
Samenvatting