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Police Enforcement Is a Necessary Factor to Road Safety

Police officers from Australia, Ireland, Moldova, the United States and the United Kingdom met at Bloomberg Philanthropies in February in order to come up with a strategy aiming at assisting police officers to reduce fatal accidents on the road.

The experts shared knowledge and experiences in eliminating road traffic fatalities during the meeting, and Bloomberg Philanthropies published a list of 10 lessons highlighting the importance of implementing road safety laws though police enforcement:

1-      Police work needs high-level political support on the municipal and governmental level.

2-      Police work needs to be backed by partnerships with communities, politicians, healthcare providers, etc.

3-      The number of police officers in a given region must be in accordance with the overall population in order to enhance road safety measures.

4-      Police enforcement can help reveal the true number of road fatalities or injuries, since these latter are currently underreported.

5-      Police enforcement and deterrence efforts can help improve the behaviour of drivers and thus maintain road safety.

6-      Rebranding road police by changing the name of the force or its uniforms can help improve their public profile.

7-      Police forces must use automated enforcement, such as breathalysers, cameras and radars.

8-      Police forces might perform better if they reflect their community’s gender and racial makeup.

9-      Media advocacy of enforcement efforts can make a big difference in police work.

10-  Enforcing road safety laws can help generate revenue for municipalities and prevent healthcare costs associated with road fatalities or injuries.