Islandwide Road Safety Assessment Project

Last month saw Saint Lucia launch the Islandwide Road Safety Assessment Project (IRSAP) following the impetus from the International Road Assessment Programme (iRap). Improving road safety is always a worthy goal. Given that the shared experience and dangers of driving are universal around the world, a look at driver safety globally, alongside this project’s key aims, shows a real path to progress.

The Way We Were

Any fair assessment must come with a recognition of the progress made up until this point. Across the board, good work has been done by car manufacturers, public authorities and motorists themselves to see that our roads today are safer than they were for generations prior. But it has also been a long and slow crawl; the common sense policies that we see today were elusive for decades.

In previous eras the expectation of a driver’s behaviour was very low, and these lax standards often had a deadly result. It was only in the 1960s that many nations began to implement random breath tests and other drink-driving laws. The introduction of such laws wasn’t met with cheer by everyone; liquor and hotel associations railed against them, fearing it would lead to an end of patronage.

And while many point to the rollout of the first Model T Ford in 1908 as the beginning of the modern automobile era, it was only in the 1970s that seatbelts — until then an optional accessory — were made mandatory. The same with airbags, pioneered by Ford in 1971, and becoming available for sale for the first time with the 1973 Oldsmobile Toronado.

Emerging Road Safety Challenges

The limited safety technology and freewheeling consumption of alcohol made driving a deadly proposition before the 1970s. But just the same as car safety technology and road laws have decreased the danger on our roads, other phenomenons have arisen to pose new threats.

Many nations have recorded a decline in drink-driving, but one substance has been replaced by others, and oftentimes it’s multiple illicit drugs. If a driver never drinks, even in moderation, but opts for a hit of cocaine or meth, the results can be just as deadly. This can pose a particularly difficult problem as, perhaps unsurprisingly, those engaging in recreational drugs are also less likely to take a strict view to prudent driving.

Saint Lucia must confront the sad truth that the past decade has seen over 160 citizens of the nation die in fatal car crashes. As well as this, the occurrence of around 5,000 minor accidents, and almost 1,500 serious vehicular accidents, adds the chilling notion that more deaths could have occurred.

IRSAP comes in complement to the Chastanet government’s ongoing investment in installing more directional road signs along Saint Lucia’s roads, and over 340 metres of guardrails where off-road dangers exist, like water hazards and steep declines. These are strong steps being taken right now to diminish risk on the island’s roads but there is also the need to recognise that even the safest roads still see hazards daily. Ensuring that drivers’ licenses and obligations remain contemporary and reflective of emerging issues, is vital.

Just over ten years ago, no driver in the Caribbean would have been at risk of getting distracted by their smartphone while at the wheel. Now, there’s the constant risk of distraction due to social media updates and other notifications when the phone isn’t on silent.

Finding the right balance in law here isn’t easy. Many jurisdictions allow for some variety of hands-free mobile phone use but the presence of the smartphone in the vehicle poses a new challenge that shows how achieving optimal driver safety is an ongoing goal, subject to evolution.

Realistic Goals and Gains

There’s the unpleasant reality that accidents will, of course, continue to happen. Human error, even when not the result of substance abuse, can still occur. Vehicles can suffer mechanical failure, and a variety of rare but serious health conditions, such as heart attacks, can result in a driver suddenly losing control of a car and becoming a risk to themselves and others. So anyone waiting for the total erosion of car accidents will be waiting for a long time indeed. The good news is that the advancement of emerging technology means it is possible this day will come.

For all the attention being placed upon what our roads will look like in years ahead, thanks to the big changes of self-driving cars, the smaller but outstanding changes we’re seeing introduced right now really are a quiet revolution. From anti-crash detection technology, to the development of technology that monitors a driver’s physiology in real time — just like a portable fitness tracker does — and brings the car to a stop in the event of a serious medical issue, we will not require driverless cars exclusively to see driver safety go to the next level in years ahead.

Use of existing technology could also offer a win-win for drivers when it comes to doing away with some of the most frustrating aspects of driving. Even though some thoughtless drivers regard red lights and speed limit signs as ‘advice only’, most drivers who acquire a road camera fine do so not due to deliberate recklessness but because of simple driver error. Yet, by building a habit of always using cruise control, the risk of acquiring a speed camera fine can essentially drop to zero.

The Road Ahead

The discussion and implementation of IRSAP’s recommendations will take time. For now there remains work that can be done beyond the improvement of road infrastructure.

However it is examined and in any nation, younger drivers typically record a higher rate of accidents and incidents on the road. Some of this can be put down to simple inexperiece and mistake, that even the very best drivers on our roads can encounter at one time or another, but for any drivers who are older (and, we’d like to think, wiser!) the sharing of knowledge in life should never be confined to the office, the classroom, or even the home.

From smart driving trips, to advice about local intersections or blind corners that can be particularly hazardous, Saint Lucians have an opportunity to work in tandem with this project, and bring down road dangers. Talking and sharing experience with young drivers across the nation is a great place to begin.