WHY IS ROAD SAFETY EDUCATION(RSE)NEEDED

Children in many motorized countries are more likely to die or be injured as a result of a road accident,than through any other cause.In developing countries,20 percent of traffic deaths are people under the age of 15 and threat of road accidents will increase with motorization.Several factors contribute to this risk to children in developing countries:

1)both the speed and volume of motor vehicle traffic will increase,especially on rehabilitated roads;

2)roadside friction will continue as poor land use planning,operational control,and limited road space lead to conflicting uses of road and roadsides;

3)road improvements tend to focus on motor vehicle requirements and not pedestrian needs;

4)traffic police can offer only limited help as they are poorly equipped to control motor vehicle traffic and not properly trained to consider pedestrian needs;and

5)most parents are unable to provide road safety training as they themselves never received any training and even if they did,traffic conditions have changed dramatically since their childhood.

RSE is needed to provide the necessary structure for the acquisition of safety knowledge and skills.These include decision making skills,and the identification and assessment of risk and strategies to reduce these risks.RSE attempts to prepare children for different tasks at each stage of their increasingly independent use of the road network and,later,as adults.(Source---asian development bank Road safety guidelines for the Asian and Pacific Region)