America has the Vision – but can they see the road ahead?

July 2020

Zero deaths is the goal and WDM SCRIM® road condition surveying can get us there

Every day more than 90 people lose their lives in crashes on American roads, according to statistics from Carsurance. Initiatives like Vision Zero, Road to Zero and Toward Zero Deaths are built upon the fundamental principle of shifting from a traditional road management mindset to a Safe Systems Approach in pursuit of eliminating traffic fatalities.

WDM SCRIM® Surveys

But is a shift in mindset enough?

At WDM USA, we believe that achieving zero traffic fatalities depends on setting clear performance standards for roads and managing roads to those standards.

In a recent article for Forbes magazine, British road safety professional Eddie Wren underscored that need, citing one of the biggest obstacles to achieving Vision Zero as a persistent lack of knowledge and transparency on road safety standards.

Wren argues that lack of knowledge and transparency, “Commonly manifests itself not only at an individual level but also up to governmental level, where no mention is ever publicly made about America’s substandard performance and what this means in terms of the huge number of ‘extra’ American lives that are unnecessarily lost each year as a result.” Unless we grapple with the fact that efforts to date are “effectively just a hopeful reliance on technology and on Vision Zero programs,” he says, [We] will not achieve anything like the improvements which could be made.” Adopting Vision Zero without adopting new performance standards is not enough.

So, how do we define and measure performance?

One way WDM USA defines performance is a 40% reduction in skid-related fatalities achievable by implementing pavement friction management programs based on continuous friction measurement.

Friction’s relationship with safety is well-established. Comparing measured friction to the friction demand creates an effective, evidence-based approach to identifying locations where improved skid resistance can result in improved safety.

The other way WDM USA defines performance is with a proven track record and extensive experience setting standards for pavement friction management programs, which are tailored to the needs and available resources for road networks ranging in size, from small authorities to central governments.

WDM USA provides solutions for identifying underlying risk factors for crashes and setting standards to reduce crashes and collisions severity using our SCRIM® road survey machines. In this way, WDM USA provides the technical solutions and expertise needed to create and sustain actionable plans to reduce crashes.

We all want to move together Towards Zero Deaths – it is the only acceptable goal. The road ahead means setting higher standards for ourselves and continuously measuring and monitoring our performance so that it’s not hopeful reliance but rather our actions that make zero deaths a reality.

More on how WDM USA and our data-driven approach can help bridge the gap in road safery coming soon, follow us on LinkedIn for all updates.

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