Bloomberg Philanthropies Announces New Investment to Improve Global Road Safety and Cycling Infrastructure Across 13 Countries, in More Than 30 Cities
$350 million investment aims to save one million lives over the next five years
New York, NY and Madrid, Spain – Today, Mike Bloomberg announced a $350 million commitment to continue support for the Bloomberg Philanthropies Initiative for Global Road Safety, including the Bloomberg Initiative for Cycling Infrastructure, further advancing efforts to enact life-saving policies that improve road design, vehicle safety, and help cities build safer, more-connected cycling networks. He made the announcement at CityLab 2026, hosted by Bloomberg Philanthropies and the Aspen Institute.
According to the World Health Organization, more than a million people lose their lives in road crashes each year and another 20 to 50 million people are injured, with many incurring a disability. Most of these deaths and injuries are preventable and often linked to system failures, such as poorly designed roads, weak policies and enforcement, and urban planning that prioritizes vehicles over the safety of pedestrians and cyclists.
“Road crashes don’t receive enough attention, even though they take a staggering toll on human life and health – and so many of the injuries and deaths are preventable,” said Michael R. Bloomberg, founder of Bloomberg L.P. and Bloomberg Philanthropies, WHO Global Ambassador for Noncommunicable Diseases and Injuries, and three-term mayor of New York City. “At Bloomberg Philanthropies, we’ve long recognized the urgency to improve road safety and the important role that improved cycling infrastructure can play. This major new investment will expand and accelerate the lifesaving progress we’ve made bringing proven interventions to streets around the world.”
The new commitment brings the total investment in the Bloomberg Philanthropies Initiative for Global Road Safety to $865 million since the program’s inception in 2007. Since then, the initiative has worked with governments and international and local partners to help pass 190 national, state, and city policies that protect 4.2 billion people and have already saved nearly 900,000 lives. Working with partners, the initiative has also improved safety features in 135 car models, redesigned over 2,400 dangerous intersections, and trained nearly 80,000 traffic police across 22 countries. The next phase of the initiative aims to save one million additional lives over the next five years.
