Skip to main content

IRF and FIA Seminar energises discussion on safe and sustainable roads

IRF, together with the FIA, held a high-level seminar in Paris on Road Safety, Sustainable Development and Financing. Contributors to the seminar included, among others, the President and Secretary General of the FIA, the Secretary General of ITF, and the Chairman of iRAP IRF and the Fédération Internationale Automobile (FIA) jointly organised a seminar on Road Safety, Sustainable Development and Financing on Thursday 17 April, one week after the UN adopted its latest resolution on “Improving global road sa
June 30, 2014 Read time: 3 mins
IRF/FIA Seminar held in Paris on Road Safety, Sustainable Development and Financing
IRF, together with the FIA, held a high-level seminar in Paris on Road Safety, Sustainable Development and Financing. Contributors to the seminar included, among others, the President and Secretary General of the FIA, the Secretary General of ITF, and the Chairman of iRAP

1201 IRF Geneva and the Fédération Internationale Automobile (FIA) jointly organised a seminar on Road Safety, Sustainable Development and Financing on Thursday 17 April, one week after the UN adopted its latest resolution on “Improving global road safety”.

The seminar was hosted by FIA at their international headquarters in Paris and brought together representatives of government, the private sector and non-governmental organisations to discuss issues including PPPs for road safety, the role of technology and education in reducing road crash fatalities, financing mechanisms for sustainable and safe road networks including road development and maintenance, implications of the new EU Concession Directive and Safer Road Investment Plans.  The distinguished panel of speakers represented international organisations, multinational corporations and NGOs operating internationally.

Safe and sustainable roads are a crucial enabler for countries to progress national, regional and international sustainable development objectives. The seminar highlighted several issues that are critical for governments to consider in the post-2015 sustainable development agenda, such as funding safe road infrastructure, building the capacity of professionals including medical professionals involved in post-crash response, and robust enforcement of traffic laws.

“This Seminar will energise the discussion for the inclusion of road safety into the post-2015 agenda” said  Jean Todt, president of FIA, in his opening statement. The secretary general of the 1102 International Transport Forum (ITF), José Viegas, added “We will not be satisfied with any low numbers. We are aiming at zero fatalities.”

The seminar also highlighted opportunities that could help governments quickly and effectively progress their efforts – including ITS, public-private partnerships, virtual training, manuals.

In her address, Susan Pikrallidas, secretary general of FIA underlined the importance of working together and added that the seminar was a clear example of the advantages of collaboration.

Presented by IRF chairman, Kiran K Kapila, the conclusions of the Seminar outline a clear set of measures that could be easily implemented and help deliver safe and sustainable roads for all.

Green Roads: Call for new Case studies

Released in Geneva on 11 December, in the framework of the IRF Summit, “Bringing Policy and Practice Together,” the publication, “Moving Towards Green Road Infrastructure: Case Studies and Lessons Learned,” marked the fulfillment of the goal the IRF Environment Committee had set for itself in terms of tools to be developed to elucidate the stand of the Federation and its members, when it comes to roads and environment. The IRF Environment Committee now calls for new Case studies to be added to the publication.

The projects examined in the publication made provisions for sustainability at different stages of the life-cycle of road infrastructure: road planning, design, construction, maintenance and rehabilitation, management and operation.
The Case studies presented were diverse by nature and geographical Span, thus providing a solid basis for a thorough reflection on how to ensure that we design, construct, maintain and operate sustainable roads.

* If you are a member of IRF and think that your road infrastructure project has made provisions for sustainability that others can learn from, please contact Susanna Zammataro %$Linker: 2 Email <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?><dictionary /> 0 0 0 oLinkEmail [email protected] false mailto:[email protected] true false%> for further information.

* Members can follow developments on IRF Environment activities and share their experience through the IRF Environment Committee Group on Linkedin. Currently, there is an interesting ongoing discussion on Green Public Procurement in the road sector!

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Better road safety is the aim of a new study
    January 21, 2013
    A new study is calling for a more standardised approach for estimating the benefits of road safety initiatives. The aim of this is to save lives through the use of better road safety indicators. There is a clear need too. Almost 1.3 million people die in road crashes every year, and between 20 and 50 million are injured. Road traffic injuries are the leading cause of death among young people between 15 and 29 years of age. Road crashes cost countries around 1-3% of their GDP. In the face of these facts, the
  • China's Roads Convention focuses on sustainability
    February 9, 2012
    IRF joins with key Chinese transport authorities to lead the way in efforts to make sustainable rural mobility, transport and access a reality for millions throughout the world. Jointly organised by IRF and the China Highway and Transportation Society (CHTS), together with the Shandong Provincial Transportation Department, the landmark 2nd International Convention on Rural Roads, hosted in the beautiful city of Jinan, China, marked a major step forward in global efforts to mobilise resources and knowledge f
  • Steering the way to greener road infrastructure
    February 14, 2012
    While international diplomatic negotiations on how to tackle climate change are faltering, the International Road Federation (IRF) is taking action and leading the way to meet calls for greener transport systems
  • ITS innovation will benefit transport in the Middle East
    May 29, 2013
    *Zeina Nazer, secretary general of ITS-Arab, introduces the rapid evolution of Intelligent Transport Systems in the Middle East and North Africa and talks about the special challenges and opportunities this represents, both for the industry and her organisation. Over the past six years, ITS-Arab has focused on promoting Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) at the policy and decision making echelons, while developing ITS specifications at a project design level throughout the Middle East and North Africa (MEN