Each year, 1.2 million people are killed by road traffic injuries. More than 3500 people die from such injuries every day.
Many more millions are injured or disabled for life.
Sources: World report on road traffic injury prevention. WHO, Geneva, Switzerland, 2004.
By 2030 there will be a 40% increase in deaths due to injury and road traffic injuries are projected to rise from the ninth leading cause of death globally in 2004, to the fifth in 2030.
Sources: World health statistics 2007. 3rd ed. WHO, Geneva, Switzerland, 2007; The global burden of disease: 2004 update. WHO, Geneva, Switzerland, 2008
In 2002, road traffic injuries were estimated to cost the global community more than US$500 billion.
Sources: Peden M, Scurfield R, Sleet D, et al, eds. World report on road traffic injury prevention. Geneva: World Health Organization, 2004. http://www.who.int/world-health-day/2004/infomaterials/world_report/en/summary_en_rev.pdf.
Each year 260,000 children die on the road and another million are seriously injured, and often permanently disabled.
Sources: Make Roads Safe, A decade of action for road safety. Commission for Global Road Safety, 2009.
The world could prevent 5 million deaths and 50 million serious injuries by 2020 through scaling up investment in road safety, at global, regional and national levels.
Sources: Make Roads Safe, A decade of action for road safety. Commission for Global Road Safety, 2009.
Over 90% of the world's road fatalities occur in low-income and middle-income countries, which have only 50% of the world's vehicles.
Almost half of those who die in road traffic crashes are pedestrians, cyclists or motor cyclists.
Sources: World report on road traffic injury prevention. WHO, Geneva, Switzerland, 2004.
With more than 100,000 road deaths per year, China accounts for around 15% of the worlds annual fatalities from traffic crashes.
Over the past 45 years, road traffic fatalities and serious injuries in China have increased 4-fold and 10-fold, respectively, with an estimated 100,000 people dying from road traffic injury each year.
Sources: World Health Organization. World report on road traffic injury prevention. Geneva: WHO, 2004. Stevenson M, Yu J, Ying Z, Hendrie D, Ivers R, Li-ping L, Norton R. China seatbelt intervention. The George Institute for International Health. Sydney, Australia, May 2007.
Every $1 invested in road safety can save as much as $20 in lost earnings, reduced productivity, and health costs.
Sources: Make Roads Safe, A decade of action for road safety. Commission for Global Road Safety, 2009.
Drivers carrying two or more passengers are twice as likely to crash as unaccompanied drivers.
However, the risk associated with carrying passengers is lower than that associated with mobile phone use.
Sources: Suzanne P McEvoy, Mark R Stevenson, Mark Woodward. The contribution of passengers versus mobile phone use to motor vehicle crashes resulting in hospital attendance by the driver. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 2007.
60% of Australian drivers use a mobile phone whilst behind the wheel.
Almost 3 million drivers are talking on the phone, 12% admit to writing text messages while driving.
Sources: BMJ, doi:10.1136/bmj.38537.397512.55 (published 12 July 2005).
