Background

Research has confirmed that there is a correlation between the maturity of road safety practices and road safety incidents (Amador and Willis, 2014), the occurrence of death and injury in road use reflects the levels of knowledge, skills, experience, and will that are present within the management and operation of the road system. This paper presents recent development and use of maturity models for rating Safe System adoption and discusses the utility of these approaches for road safety programmes and practice.

Objective

To explore the validity and value of maturity frameworks to contribute usefully to the development of the road safety management systems which exist at a project, organizational or country level.

Programme Description

The Safe System Framework (ITF), the Safe System Cultural Maturity Model (Agilysis) and the Road Safety Maturity Framework (ADB), all developed on the basis of a wide range of international literature, can be used by companies, road authorities, governments and others in deciding to what extent the road safety problems they face, and planned programmes match the current scientific knowledge about effective interventions. These frameworks consist of concentrated descriptions of best practices, allowing for adjustment to specific local situations for new road safety challenges.

Outcomes and Learnings

Implementing the Safe System is first and foremost a matter of cooperation between professionals, adapting the theory to the practical limitations. At various organisational levels, the Safe System must influence a combination of policy, strategy, management, culture and practice. Through their combined efforts, these maturity models provide relevant support to identify Safe System alignment at national, regional, municipal, organizational and project level.

Implications

These maturity models provide mechanisms for measurement and comparison, assisting in diagnosing vulnerabilities, harmonizing approaches, enhancing collaboration and strengthening capacity.

Conclusions

There are multiple routes to Safe System maturity. Collectively, these tools can provide a holistic view of a jurisdiction’s or organization’s maturity. Used in combination, they provide a toolbox for measuring and enhancing maturity.