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CARSP President, Dr. Brian Jonah and CARSP Board Member, Mr. Neil Arason win TAC Decade of Action Road Safety Awards!

Decade of Action Road Safety Awards at TAC Conference
(Original post is found at Transportation Association of Canada website and was posted on October 9th, 2015)

The Transportation Association of Canada (TAC) handed out four Decade of Action Road Safety Awards at its 2015 Conference & Exhibition in Charlottetown, PEI.

The conference theme, Getting You There Safely, was established as a nod to the fact that 2015 marks the midpoint in the United Nations Decade of Action on Road Safety.

A set of special awards was suggested by TAC’s Road Safety Standing Committee in partnership with volunteers from Transport Canada, the Canadian Association of Roads Safety Professionals (CARSP), and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

The 2015 Decade of Action Road Safety Awards recognize outstanding contributions or achievements that stand out as being forward-thinking and/or providing leadership in one or more of the five pillars of the United Nations Decade of Action for Road Safety, namely: road safety management; safer roads and mobility; safer vehicles; road safety users, and post-crash response.

Awards were presented by Gerry Chaput, TAC President and Paul Arsenault, Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators (CCMTA) Chair, Partner of the Decade of Action Road Safety Awards. Recipients were: Dr. Brian Jonah; Neil Arason; the City of Edmonton and Urban Systems; and the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia.

Dr. Brian Jonah, Senior Researcher, CCMTA, and President of the CARSP, was presented with an award in recognition of his active involvement in road safety research and evaluation, vehicle regulation, evidence-based policy, and program development for over 35 years.

During his tenure at Transport Canada as Director of Road Safety Programs, Brian headed the Road Safety Vision 2010 Task Force. This national plan contributed to reductions of over 30% in the number of fatalities and serious injuries occurring on Canada’s roads by 2011.

He recently led a national public opinion survey on road safety addressing risky behaviours which will serve as a baseline measure to address progress on the Road Safety Strategy 2015, led by the CCMTA.

Among other initiatives, Brian is currently developing a training program for public health officials which will assist low and middle income countries to develop capacity to address road safety.

Neil Arason, Manager, BC Road Safety Strategies, Policy and Strategic Initiatives, BC Ministry of Justice, received an award for his contributions to the roads safety management pillar, and as an independent writer to help increase awareness.

In 2014, Neil Arason published a book entitled No Accident: Eliminating Injury and Death on Canadian Roads. The goal of Neil’s book, as well as his work, is to help foster societal change by increasing awareness and outlining approaches to road safety, by adopting safe system thinking.

This approach involves setting holistic measures and evaluating performance on many levels to continually reduce and ultimately eliminate deaths, severe injuries and human suffering from motor transport.

Neil was a central catalyst in the development of the BC Road Safety Strategy introduced in 2011 which provides a formal structure for overseeing road safety, bringing together a broad reach of organizations including the health community and non-government groups. He is currently leading the preparation of a business case for creating the first BC centre for road safety research.

The third Decade of Action award was presented to the City of Edmonton and Urban Systems in honour of its light rail transit (LRT) corridor safety review.

A study involving a review of safety and operations for all modes of transportation was conducted along 102 Avenue, one of the planned corridors scheduled to run through the downtown core. The purpose of the study was to review corridor designs to ensure a multi-modal function for LRT, cyclists and pedestrians, while addressing any safety issues.

A review of international best practices in bicycle and pedestrian design including wider sidewalks, protected cycle tracks, pedestrian crossing distances, and separate signal phases for all road users helped to provide key recommendations. Providing high quality facilities for transit users, cyclists and pedestrians will lead to increased use of sustainable forms of transportation.

The final 2015 Decade of Action for Road Safety was awarded to the Road Improvement Program, an initiative of the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC), which develops and leads a host of safety projects with over 80 municipal partners to promote safer roads and mobility.

Through cost-sharing, the program has supported many innovations including reflective signal backboards, speed-activated signals, profiled pavement markings and modern roundabouts.

This innovative partnering between insurance and road authorities has led to a reduction in claims costs due to road improvements.

Since 2011, the program has included proactive funding of meritorious safety projects at low-crash/no crash sites; a program of municipal road safety audits and municipal workshops to improve signs and markings.

Partners with road authorities in BC provide engineering / technical advice and funding for safer road infrastructure. The program also coordinates education and enforcement initiatives and specialists on safer vehicles, vulnerable road users and youth.

TAC will confer another set of awards in 2020 to mark the end of the Decade of Action for Road Safety.