Mexico is in last place in road safety

Among the countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Mexico ranks last in terms of road safety, as it has no agencies or budget to address issues related to this matter.

Mexico is in last place in road safety
Road sign. Image by Dejan Dodic from Pixabay

Mexico ranks last in road safety among the countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) because it has no agencies or budget to address issues related to the matter.

Therefore, it is necessary for the country to have a National Road Safety Agency that is responsible for guaranteeing public policies and executing actions to prevent traffic accidents and save lives, stated the National Alliance for Road Safety (Anasevi).

Arturo Cervantes Trejo, president of the Alliance, mentioned that the country is at a disadvantage compared to nations such as Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, and Spain, among others, which already have autonomous bodies, allocated budget and technical capacity to address issues related to road safety.

"So far, Mexico, compared to OECD countries, is in last place because it does not have a National Road Safety Agency. Among the most important shortcomings in the country, we do not have a complete and functional public registry of vehicles; we do not have driving test requirements for the issuance of driver's licenses; the sale of substandard vehicles that do not have the new technologies to prevent accidents and make them safer is allowed; there is no reliable data on road accidents; there is a huge underreporting of deaths, injuries and traffic events, among many others," detailed Arturo Cervantes.

He pointed out that the absence of a specialized agency goes against the recommendations issued by the United Nations and the Global Plan for the Second Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021-2030.

Towards 2030, he said, the aim should be to guarantee access to sustainable and safe transportation systems, to have quality mobility infrastructure to support economic development and social welfare and to reduce the number of accidents and deaths caused by the millions of road accidents that occur every year.

To promote road safety actions, Anasevi, together with other institutions, will hold the IV Ibero-American Congress on Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS).

Source: Jornada