FICVI Presents Petition for Human-centric Roads for Costa Rica

In June 2017, the annual Federación Iberoaméricana De Asociaciones De Víctimas Contra La Violencia Vial (FICVI) international conference was held in Costa Rica with the theme “Integral Care for Victims of Traffic Accidents” The high point of the conference this year was the opportunity to present to the Legislative Assembly of Costa Rica and to present them with a petition, led by Alliance member ACONVIVIR, to implement a series of urgent measures to reduce the number of death and injuries on the road. The president of the Assembly promised to send the petition to the relevant departments to ensure that corrective actions are taken.

The petition called for a move from a car-centric perspective, to a human-centric model for urban development and mobility. Among its requests to the Costa Rican government were:

• A commitment to reduce road deaths by 50%
• Measures to protect cyclists and pedestrians and to promote physical activity, including 30 kilometers per hour limits on mixed use roads at specific times of day.
• More enforcement of existing laws, including more road surveillance, and rigorous and impartial application of road laws within the courts.
• Consideration of the safety and needs of pedestrians and cyclists in the construction and maintenance of roads.
• Establishment of university courses to create professional experts in road safety.
• Programs within the health service to care for road victims.
• A policy on Sustainable and Safe Mobility
• Establishment of reliable statistical data and research and establishment of a Road Safety Observatory as in other Latin American countries to monitor the work of government entities on road safety and assist in solutions.

The event was attended by 40 people and speakers included Ms. Liza Castillo Vásquez, Deputy Minister for Transport and Road Safety; Mr. Gonzalo Ramírez Zamora, the President of the Legislative Assembly; Ms. Jeanne Picard, President of FICVI; and Mr. Juan Carlos Chavarría Herrera, Director of the Department of Citizen Participation.

FICVI is an NGO who include 20 civil society organizations from 14 Iberoamerican countries: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Portugal, Uruguay, and Venezuela with the mission to promote a cultural change through the joint and coordinated action of its federated organizations to support and strengthen road safety in the Latin American and Caribbean region. They raise the awareness of society to eliminate road violence and its consequences, promoting actions for our governments to establish road safety as a political priority.

The Alliance congratulates FICVI and its attendees on gaining the ear of the Costa Rican Assembly and we look forward to hearing what actions come out of the petition.