In the long run,
the facts are on the side of the optimists.
To paraphrase Martin Luther King Jr., the arc of history bends toward progress. But progress doesn't just happen. People work hard to discover ways forward.
The What Works Initiative
highlights positive outcomes on difficult issues – and how people achieved them.
The world’s roads have long been deadly places. For Americans from ages 1 to 44, traffic was for decades the leading cause of death.
But since 2011, traffic deaths globally have fallen 21 percent – even as the number of vehicles has doubled. Behind the change are shifts from more seatbelts and motorcycle helmets to better anti-lock brakes and steering mechanisms.
Progress has not been evenly spread. In Europe, deaths fell 36 percent. Africa actually rose 17 percent (though the number of vehicles rose much more). In the US, deaths on the road rose due to drivers distracted by their phones and the rise of large SUVs and pickups that are especially deadly to pedestrians and cyclists. But even American roads have become safer after fatalities peaked in the pandemic.
A model for the way forward: Hoboken.
The New Jersey city of 60,000 is high-density with a mix of cars, bikes, and pedestrians that makes for dangerous streets. But they haven’t had a single traffic fatality since January 17, 2017. For reference, even one year without such a fatality is extremely rare for such a city.
Key steps: Dramatically improving visibility for both drivers and pedestrians at the corners of intersections, lower speed limits (20 mph), and adding bike lanes and curb extensions whenever they are repaving a street.
Sources: World Health Organization; The Fulcrum; Reasons To Be Cheerful; CDC; The Guardian