Like Sustainable Safety, the Swedish Vision Zero is internationally known as a ‘safe system approach’ [30] [31]. Also see the question How does Sustainable Safety relate to international road safety visions? Vision Zero contends that it is immoral to accept road casualties. Like Sustainable Safety, Vision Zero takes the 'human dimension' as the guiding principle in a safe layout of the traffic system. Safe road layout, appropriate legislation and enforcement are the associated government responsibilities [62]. Citizens are responsible for abiding by the rules. Unlike Sustainable Safety, education and information campaigns are not part of Vision Zero (see for instance [63] or an interview with founding father Claes Tingvall [i]). Vision Zero is a long term ambition with intermediate specific objectives: ’management by objectives‘.
Meanwhile, the European Union has embraced ‘Vision Zero’ and aims to rule out road deaths and serious road injuries in the long run. Other countries, among which the United Kingdom and Luxemburg, and several major cities in Europe and North America have also adopted a Vision Zero [30]. In the Netherlands, several provinces have adopted a long term vision of a traffic system without any casualties. With the publication of the Dutch Strategic Road Safety Plan this ambition has been nationally embraced as well [54]. Common ground is, above all, the moral premise not to accept any casualties at all. This does not always imply that the ‘safe system approach’ is adopted to achieve a casualty-free traffic system. In other words: Vision Zero does not automatically imply that a 'safe system' approach is chosen. However, in both the Swedish Vision Zero and in the third edition of Sustainable Safety this link is explicitly made. Thus, the third edition of Sustainable Safety is subtitled: principles for a casualty-free road traffic system.
[i] To be accessed here after registration: https://www.sensysgatso.com/sensys-gatso/sensys-gatso-academy-new/seminars/interview-with-dr-claes-tingvall
