Continued improvement in Japan’s road safety

Improved road safety in Japan has been revealed, following the release of the latest official statistics. During 2016 there were 3,904 road deaths in Japan, a drop of 213 from the previous year. The data is significant as this is the lowest level of recorded road fatalities for 67 years and the first time in this period that road deaths have dropped below 4,000. The reasons for Japan’s improved road safety are thought to include better road design, safer vehicles and gains in traffic safety education measur
January 5, 2017 Read time: 1 min
Improved road safety in Japan has been revealed, following the release of the latest official statistics. During 2016 there were 3,904 road deaths in Japan, a drop of 213 from the previous year. The data is significant as this is the lowest level of recorded road fatalities for 67 years and the first time in this period that road deaths have dropped below 4,000. The reasons for Japan’s improved road safety are thought to include better road design, safer vehicles and gains in traffic safety education measures. The gains in road safety are expected to continue in future years and the target by the Japanese Government is to cut road deaths to 2,500/year or lower by 2020.

Related Content

  • Spreading knowledge on European standards beyond Europe
    October 8, 2015
    Europe is a global leader in road safety. It has an average of 50 traffic fatalities/million population, half that of the equivalent figure for the USA While there is no magical formula for improving road safety, it is possible to observe a positive correlation between the advent of performance-based standards for essential road equipment and the impressive reduction in road fatalities that Europe has seen since 2001, a drop of 50%.
    Read More
  • Safety first at IRF Caribbean Regional Congress in Jamaica
    July 7, 2015
    The wealth of experiences and ideas shared during the recent 4th IRF Caribbean Regional Congress underscored the International Road Federation’s value in shaping policy contributions to global transportation challenges ranging from resilient infrastructure to road safety. The regional congress coincided with the start of the 3rd United Nations Global Road Safety Week, an initiative aimed at fostering discussion and awareness-raising in more than 100 countries. The event was run by the IRF Washington office
    Read More
  • US congestion issue unveiled by FHWA
    June 15, 2017
    The latest data from the US Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) reveals that traffic congestion is worsening.
    Read More
  • Construction industry recovery continues
    June 15, 2016
    The latest report from Europe’s contractor association, the FIEC, shows that the recovery of the construction industry should continue, but at a slower pace. The FIEC reports a 2.4% recovery in activity in the overall EU construction industry in 2015 and forecasts an increase of 2.1% in 2016. “After reaching the bottom in 2013 activity is slowly recovering in the construction industry,” said FIEC Vice-President Jean-Louis Marchand, responsible for economic issues, as he presented FIEC’s annual statistics
    Read More

Highlighted Content