UN launches global road safety campaign in US with goal of halving the number of victims by 2030
UNITED NATIONS — The United Nations launched its global road safety campaign in the United States on Monday, which aims to halve the number of road deaths. road traffic victims worldwide in 2030.
The two-year advertising campaign aims to educate people about basic but life-saving safety precautions, such as wearing seat belts and helmets and putting phones away in cars, Jean Todt, the UN special envoy for road safety, told a news conference to launch the U.S. campaign.
The ads will appear on JCDecaux billboards in more than 80 countries and 1,000 cities, including New York City, Chicago and Boston, starting Monday, said Jean-Luc Decaux, president and co-CEO of JCDecaux North America.
He said the campaign underscores how media reach “can raise awareness to save lives and spread the message of international road safety.”
The #MakeASafetyStatement campaign is part of the UN’s new Decade of Action for Road Safety, which launched in 2021. According to the United Nations, more than one million people die in road traffic accidents every year, with more than 90% of these deaths occurring in developing countries.
“Unfortunately, (in) many countries, mainly in Africa, and in some countries in Asia, in Latin America, the numbers are getting worse,” U.N. envoy Todt said. “That’s why we need to work together with the government, together with the private sector to wake up to what I call a silent pandemic.”
According to the UN, traffic accidents are the second leading cause of death in the United States, after firearms. But many of these deaths are preventable.
The word Health Organization guess that the death rate in the US more than double that of Europe.
In 2014, New York City launched the traffic safety program Vision Zero to reduce the number of deaths and serious injuries on the roads. It has built hundreds of miles of bike lanes, installed automatic speed cameras and established speed zones around schools, according to the city’s international affairs commissioner, Edward Mermelstein.
According to him, the number of road deaths has decreased by 12% between 2013 and 2023 and the number of pedestrian deaths by 45%. However, dangers on the road remain.
“We are still one of the — if not the safest city when it comes to vehicle issues that have occurred with both bikes and cars,” Mermelstein said. “We will do better, and with the help of the United Nations and our partners at JCDecaux, I think that’s a great start.”
The JCDecaux campaign launched in Brussels, Belgium, in September and has since run road safety ads in Mongolia and South Africa. The ads feature 14 international celebrities, including UN Development Programme Goodwill Ambassador Michelle Yeoh, tennis player Novak Djokovic and singer Kylie Minogue.
Decaux said his company may continue its collaboration with the UN on road safety awareness beyond the two-year campaign.