Maybe road safety isn't really a road safety problem

After more than 22 years working in road safety, it suddenly occurred to me the other day that if I want to help reduce road harm, perhaps I'm actually in the wrong profession.

That thought came to me while in Sweden last week - home of Vision Zero and one of the safest countries in the world when it comes to road safety.

I was fortunate to attend the Axkid Child and Safety Conference at the impressive World of Volvo in Gothenburg. One morning, I took myself off on the tram into the city centre simply to observe, soak up the atmosphere and watch how people used the roads and public spaces around them.

Watching how people interacted with one another while walking, cycling, driving and using public transport, there appeared to be a shared understanding that everyone has a responsibility - not only for their own safety, but for the safety of others. Whether travelling by tram, bicycle, car or on foot, responsibility felt shared rather than divided.

In many ways, it was exactly what I had expected to see. After all, I have spent much of my career hearing about Sweden's approach to road safety and the remarkable progress it has made over many decades. Yet there was something quite different about experiencing it first-hand.

Reading reports, listening to presentations and discussing policies can tell you a great deal, but it is only when you see how people interact with one another in everyday life that you begin to appreciate the role culture may play in creating safer roads.

I am not suggesting Sweden is perfect, nor that road harm does not occur there. However, what I observed felt cultural rather than road safety-related. It seemed to reflect wider attitudes, behaviours and a collective sense of responsibility that extended well beyond the transport system itself.

The more I reflect on what I saw, the more I find myself questioning whether the solution to reducing road harm actually sits within road safety at all.

Of course, road safety interventions matter. Safe roads, safe vehicles, effective enforcement, education, legislation and public awareness campaigns all play an important role. But increasingly, I wonder whether much of what we do is treating the symptoms rather than the cause.

Sometimes it feels as though road safety interventions are like applying a sticking plaster to a much bigger societal issue.

The harm we see on our roads may be influenced as much by education, public health, community values, social responsibility, trust and empathy as it is by any individual road safety intervention. Perhaps that is why some countries appear to make greater progress than others. It is not simply about the measures they introduce, but the culture that sits behind them.

If we are serious about achieving Vision Zero, perhaps the next step is not to think more about road safety, but to think more broadly about the kind of society we want to create - because safer roads may simply be one of the outcomes of a healthier, more responsible and more considerate culture.

A final thank you to Jayne, Daniel and Anton at Axkid for giving me the opportunity to attend. I was also fortunate to share the experience with Dr Elizabeth Box, Dr Sarah O'Toole, Caitlin Taylor and James Luckhurst, who made the perfect companions for three days of learning, discussion and reflection on child passenger safety and Vision Zero.