The transport community witnessed an important moment on 13 December 2023, as the World Health Organization (WHO) unveiled its highly anticipated 2023 Global Status Report on Road Safety. This new report captures an update on the current magnitude of global road traffic deaths, whilst also serving as a comprehensive retrospective on the achievements and challenges of the past decade.

As we advance through the new Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021–2030, this report sets a transformative baseline for understanding and addressing the complexities of road safety worldwide.

As part of a collaborative effort, the International Road Federation (IRF) contributed essential data points from its World Road Statistics to enrich the WHO report. This partnership underscores a commitment to revolutionising global road safety, offering a nuanced understanding that lays the foundation for transformative initiatives.

Unifying Official Figures and Expert Assessments for a Global Road Safety Perspective

Produced by the IRF for the past six decades, the World Road Statistics are a comprehensive source of up-to-date road and transport data, available for free through the IRF Data Warehouse.

Meticulously compiled, the WRS primarily reports on figures from primary statistical sources—data reported directly by countries. However, in the case of road fatalities, the WRS data additionally reports on WHO estimates for road fatalities. This deliberate inclusion reflects the belief that WHO estimations offer valuable insights that complement officially reported data.

By integrating WHO data into the WRS report, a more nuanced picture emerges, combining official statistics with expert estimations. This collaboration enhances the accuracy and depth of the data set, offering policymakers, researchers, and the public a more comprehensive perspective on the challenges and progress in road safety.

In order to provide users with a comparison between reported and estimated road fatalities, the International Road Federation (IRF) plans to swiftly update the WRS Data Warehouse with the new figures from the WHO 2023 report.

As we navigate the ongoing Decade of Action for Road Safety (2021 – 2030), this collaboration  stands as a testament to the power of partnerships in addressing complex global challenges.

Visit www.worldroadstatistics.org to learn more about the IRF World Road Statistics and Data Warehouse.