When it comes to highlighting the effect of road traffic accidents worldwide, one of the easiest ways to communicate the scope of the issue is through numbers—1.24 million road traffic deaths occur every year; that’s nearly 3400 deaths a day. Road traffic accidents represent the number one cause of death among young people aged 15–29 years, and almost three times more men than women die from road traffic injuries.

Beyond this high human toll and incalculable suffering and grief, road traffic accidents carry a substantial economic price, with losses to victims and their families, communities and nations as a whole. Road traffic injuries cost countries on average 3% of gross national product. Indirect costs, such as loss of productivity, property damage and reduced quality of life, must also be included in calculating the real impact on society.

Yet, this loss of life is so unnecessary. Best evidence about what works to prevent these tragedies is based on successful experiences from a number of countries, including Australia, Germany, Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and United Kingdom, where road traffic deaths have dramatically declined in recent decades. In France, another country that has made huge strides, it is unfathomable today to image that in the early 1970s more than 16 000 people were killed on the roads each year; today, that figure is less than 3500.

How are such successes explained? While no single measure adequately addresses the vast range of risks on the world’s roads, concerted efforts on a number of fronts have shown what works, which includes:

• Improving roads and road infrastructure to enhance safety for those who walk and cycle and providing safe and accessible public transport.
• Further developing the security of vehicles.
• Enhancing the behaviour of road users so that they avoid speeding and drinking and driving and use seat belts, child car seats and motorcycle helmets.
• Improving emergency care after a crash.
• Building road safety management capacity.

Such actions are reflected in the Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011–2020, a 10-year framework supported by a broad partnership of countries, United Nations and other international agencies, national road safety entities, foundations and the media. The Decade of Action is helping to turn the road safety story around, in favour of safer roads, improved health outcomes for people and more liveable communities.

The proposed sustainable development goal target of halving by 2020 the number of global deaths and injuries from road traffic accidents would result in at least 600 000 lives saved per year compared to the current figure. Considering that almost 60% of road traffic deaths are among 15–44 year olds—often a family’s breadwinner—this means that hundreds of thousands of people in their prime would not have their lives cut short by an eminently preventable cause.

The main question now is how to get to 2020. For all its positive impact, the Decade of Action has also demonstrated the difficulty in effecting sustainable road safety policies—many governments continue to lack comprehensive legislation that meets best practice on all key risk factors for death, injury and disability. In fact, less than 10% of the world’s population is covered by optimal laws on these factors, and even where they do exist, governments often fail to provide sufficient human and financial resources to enforce them.

To expedite progress and reach the 2020 target, a shift in mindset is desperately needed. Governments must accept that roads everywhere should serve the needs of, and are safe for, all who use them, including the most vulnerable—pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists. The development of transport networks need not come at the cost of safety on the roads. A surge in political will to scale up interventions will make all the difference.

Getting there will require an unprecedented level of commitment and collaboration, the likes of which the international global road safety community has yet to experience. But by building on the solid foundation set by the Decade of Action and the impressive work under way in many countries, the sustainable development goal on road traffic safety can set a precedent as being one of the first goals to be reached.