FedEx Express, a subsidiary of FedEx Corp and international non-profit the Global Alliance of NGOs for Road Safety have launched the Safer Cycling Advocate Program, a two-year collaboration aimed at improving safety for vulnerable road users in Balkan cities.
The Global Alliance of NGOs for Road Safety, a network member organisation that brings together more than 220 road safety organisations, will engage its member NGO, the European Cyclists Federation (ECF), to define the safe cycling practices that have proven successful in the central European cities of Copenhagen and Amsterdam. This best practice information will later be used by community organisations looking to promote cycling culture and reduce road fatalities in cities in Croatia, Slovenia and Bosnia.
European roads are some of the safest in the world, but in 2016, the European Commission estimated the social cost of road traffic incidents to be around €100 billion. Cyclists account for 8% of all road traffic fatalities in Europe. Croatia, Slovenia and Bosnia have all seen an increase in cycling but also have a pressing need to improve cycling road safety.
“As the United Nations Decade of Action for Road Safety nears to a close, this is the ideal moment to deliver a significant push towards safer roads in Europe,” said Rock Sherman, vice president, European Road Network, FedEx Express. “Road safety has long been a focus area for us. By collaborating with a non-profit that connects road safety charities, we are helping to share valuable information with organisations looking to deliver positive change in their own communities.”