GOVERNMENTAL STATUS REPORT, SWEDEN 2001-06-0121

The safety situation in Sweden has improved the last decade but the positive trend has levelled out the last few years. The parliament has taken interest in the problem and has formulated the “Vision Zero” as a new strategy. The Vision Zero claims that it is not acceptable to have fatalities and injuries leading to long-term problem in the road transport system. The government has further focussed the work by a special 11-point program for traffic safety and an investigation how to establish legislation giving all system designers larger responsibility for the safety level in the road transport system. New better knowledge is needed to support the new strategy. Changing the focus from accidents to preventing severe injuries will help to solve the problem. More co-operations between the various traffic safety disciplines are urged for in the design of a crashworthy road transport system, where vehicles, infrastructure, speed and human failures are handled simultaneously.