Overview
The vision is a South East Europe free of high risk roads. The UN Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-2020 has begun. The EU and development banks have new safety requirements for the road projects they will support.
A European Road Safety Area has been proposed to ensure road networks are consistently safe for travel between European countries. There are growing calls from the European Parliament and motoring clubs to eliminate high risk roads particularly on the busy major national and regional roads where the majority of road deaths are concentrated.
SENSOR will build on outstanding cooperation between automobile clubs, universities and authorities in SEE in measuring and mapping the safety of roads. With EU support, safety rating results have been developed by 9 of the 16 countries, mostly on trans-European E-routes. Colour coded risk maps using one system of measurement show the changing rate of death and serious injury as drivers move from one road section, or country, to another. Five SEE countries have had parts of their network star rated for in-built safety just as new cars are crash tested and star rated for safety. Star rating is carried out by driving an inspection vehicle over a route and then, in the laboratory, analysing the route in 100m sections and testing for over 30 factors known to affect crash rates. Now development banks globally have jointly announced their support for safety ratings and improving infrastructure safety performance measurably as part of their UN Decade commitment.
SENSOR takes safety rating to the next level - from measurement to action by identifying the risks that road users face from infrastructure and the changes that can save the most lives for the money available. It applies the latest tools from the International Road Assessment Programme, a charity supporting countries and financial institutions worldwide during the UN Decade. The results give GPS mapped sites where improvements often as simple as barriers, school crossings or roadside hazard clearance can make a difference. The SENSOR trans-national collaboration is the largest of its type in the world and the second largest single programme. The collaboration spans 14 countries, two of which have already applied the new techniques and are implementing results. SENSOR will inspect up to 15,000kms of priority routes including up to one-third of E-routes in participating countries. It will inspect safety for all types of road users including pedestrians and cyclists.
SENSOR has 8 leading Project Partners notably from the regions motoring club network who will contribute their own resources to ensure it impacts the entirety of South East Europe, following through the recent meeting to develop the UN Decade of Action for Road Safety between EC President Barroso and FIA President Jean Todt. Huge support for SENSOR has also been pledged by 16 organisations representing 14 SEE countries including charities, universities, ministries and roads agencies who can help implement recommendations and ensure concrete action.
The 2-year project is coordinated by Make Roads Safe Hellas (MRSH), a charity which took a leading regional role in the campaign to achieve the UN Decade. MRSH is supported by the EuroRAP who are experts in overseeing road assessment programmes and specialist safety charity EASST. Together, SENSOR partners will develop plans to eliminate high risk roads through:
- Risk mapping E-routes across all SEE countries
- Star Rating up to 15,000 kms of E-routes and major roads where deaths are concentrated
- Bank ready investment plans: high return, affordable and capable of being implemented over the UN Decade as free-standing schemes, in maintenance programmes or rehabilitation schemes
SENSORs communications will develop public and professional support in every participating country. It will show how safer roads can contribute alongside safer driving and safer vehicles to make roads safe in the UN Decade.