The 7th UN Global Road Safety Week will be held 15-21 May 2023. It will call for policy makers to #RethinkMobility in order to make walking, cycling, and public transport safe and convenient so that people can make the shift to active, sustainable mobility. This modal shift is one of the recommendations in the Global Plan for the Decade of Action 2021-2030.
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The theme of this year’s UN Global Road Safety Week is an ideal opportunity to push for specific, evidence-based interventions that make walking, cycling, and public transport safer. Start by identifying the one, key action that will help make walking, cycling, and public transport safer in your community, city, or country, and plan how you will get that message across.
Here are some ideas for activities for the week to help you push your advocacy forward. This is not an exhaustive list and we would love to hear your other activity plans and ideas.
Make a few key streets where people and vehicles usually mix (such as shopping streets), car free for a day. Rather than just encouraging people to walk and cycle, car free days create the conditions where they can walk and cycle freely. Remember to get the necessary permissions well in advance and advertise your car free day widely.
Involved: local authorities, NGOs, communities, media
Hold a media event or roundtable on public transport or with a decision maker or other public figure walking or cycling to show that it is a desirable way to travel. Decision makers (or influencers and celebrities) have a powerful influence on people’s perceptions. In many countries, people are not used to powerful people walking, cycling, and taking public transport.
Involved: decision makers/influencers/celebrities, journalists, NGOs
Walk your decision maker around the neighborhood. Show them what the problems are and needs to be done to make your streets safe for walking and cycling. This activity could empower community groups, schools, and other groups to demand safety. It could also incorporate a record your journey element.
Involved: decision makers, NGOs, community members and leaders
Promote bicycle lanes or other active mobility infrastructure by selecting a street and implementing temporary pop up infrastructure (with permissions).
Involved: Local authorities, NGOs, community groups
Encourage people to use public transport by making it free for a day and talking about the benefits of safe public transport.
Involved: local authorities, bus companies, media and social media
Use the opportunity of the UN Global Road Safety Week for a public unveiling of an implementation and to push for wider roll out.
Involved: local authorities, NGOs, community groups and members, media
Campaign weeks are also a great opportunity to arrange with your authorities to publicly make a specific commitment for active travel.
Involved: decision makers, NGOs, media
Mobilize and incentivize employees to use active transport modes to get to work and back. This could be individually or corporately walking en masse from a fixed point or taking a bus provided by the company. Make sure that the mode of transport and route is safe.
Involved: management, employees. May require marshalls or local authority approvals. Could be a media opportunity.
For employees or community members to bring their bikes for maintenance and check ups. Also suitable for community groups and NGOs.
People record their steps or distances walked or cycled for a week. This could be a corporate challenge which could link to a social media or fundraising/matching challenge.
Download social media banners from WHO’s website HERE.
The Alliance has produced some additional signboards/banners.
Update with your own messages using these Powerpoint versions of the banners HERE.
A limited number of small grants of up to US$1,000 are available to support Alliance members’ UN Global Road Safety Week campaigns. Successful applications will have a clear and specific advocacy ask for an evidence-based intervention to support a safe shift to walking, cycling, and/or public transport, such as 30km/h speed limits, lowering speed limits, traffic calming measures, or pedestrian facilities.
Please ensure you read the ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA carefully and attend a WALKTHROUGH SESSION before applying. Applications must be received by 16 April 2023. Apply HERE.
The Alliance will hold a series of walkthroughs for members to orient them for the UN Global Road Safety Week, discussing the theme, advocacy asks and activity ideas, materials and tools, and the small grant application requirements. Please sign up for your preferred session below:
Read more on the official WHO website for the campaign: 7th UN Global Road Safety Week (who.int)