Limpopo Road Safety Programme
Background
In partnership with Impact Catalyst, Anglo American, Exxaro, CSIR, World Vision, Office of the Premier – Limpopo Provincial Government, and iRAP, the Global Road Safety Partnership established the Limpopo Road Safety Programme. Spanning 3 years, this collaborative initiative is aimed at improving road safety and reducing road traffic incidents in the Limpopo province of South Africa.
Challenge
Limpopo Province, home to 5.9 million people (2019) which accounts for 10% of the South African population, comprises five district municipalities, with Vhembe District Municipality having the largest share of households. Limpopo has 4,239 schools across 650 cities and towns.
According to the National Household Travel Survey 2020, women in Limpopo travel more frequently than men, increasing their potential exposure to traffic.
Despite useful data insights, crash and fatal and serious injury (FSI) statistics are often under-reported.
The Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) reported that, on average, 7,929 people died in road traffic crashes in Limpopo between 2015 and 2019, accounting for 11.9% of South Africa’s total road traffic fatalities.
Goals
The Safe System approach aims to facilitate change in thinking and action regarding road safety in the Limpopo Province. This approach is used to achieve the project objective of reducing road traffic fatalities and injuries through education, enforcement, infrastructure improvements, and community engagement in Limpopo.
The implementation of strategic contributions through different workstreams related to key components of elements of the safe system are:
Strengthening Institutional Road Safety Management Capacity
Supporting Safe Road Infrastructure
Fostering Safe Road Use
Improving Post-crash Response
GRSP’s role
The Limpopo Road Safety Programme is based on the experience that GRSP and iRAP have implemented around the world, including in South Africa. The two elements that are implemented in this project are:
- VIA – road safety education for the next generation, including Star Rating for Roads implemented in 60 schools.
- Full Safe to School – Safe to Home project implemented in 2 demonstration schools.
In addition to the two educational elements, the Road Policing Capacity Assessment and Capacity Development will also be embedded as part of the projects.
For over 10 years, GRSP has been providing Road Policing Capacity Building for police agencies globally which includes training police on the Safe System approach to road safety. The GRSP programmes include training police on the ‘safe system’ approach to road safety with the aim of:
- Safe road users
- Safe vehicles
- Safe speeds
- Safe roads and roadsides
The objectives of the Road Policing Capacity Assessment and Capacity Development are:
- To assess the interest of the Limpopo Department of Transport and Community Safety and Traffic Police in being involved in a capacity building programme.
- To conduct an on the ground road policing capacity assessment over one week involving travel to the province and meeting with police.
- Preparing a full capacity assessment and plan for how road policing can be improved along with a detailed budget.
