20 November 2022 marks the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims. This is a UN initiative involving governmental and non-governmental organizations from all over the world.
This year, the campaign puts the spotlight on Justice. “When carried out seriously, fairly and consistently, traffic law enforcement is what road crash victims deserve. We must learn our lessons from the mistakes so that they may not be repeated”, stressed the campaign organizers. Some of the measures supported also by Bulgarian institutions are law enforcement, thorough investigation of each accident in order to prevent its recurrence, and the planning and consistent implementation of prevention actions.
According to official figures, 1.35 million people are killed every year and tens of millions are injured because of road accidents. The figures reconfirm the term used by the WHO to refer to what is happening on the world’s roads, i.e. ‘pandemic’. It has a devastating impact on countries, communities, and families, and it is only through common and coordinated action that we can achieve sustainable results.
The WHO plans for the World Day, during the new Decade of Action (2021-2030), to play an important role in promoting the consequences of this pandemic and the need for coordinated action to help achieve the 50% reduction target for road casualties.
“Today, we will honor the memory of those who are no longer among us and we will continue to support each other and act together to save lives,” stress campaign participants. State Agency Road Safety takes part in the commemoration of the day, which is conducted under the general call “No more victims on the road, let’s live our lives together!”
The European Federation of Road Traffic Victims (FEVR) launched the initiative in 1995. While initially commemorated only in Europe, it gained global popularity very quickly and in 2005 it was proclaimed a World Remembrance Day by a UN resolution and has been commemorated annually on every third Sunday of November.
More information on the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims