Posted on November 19, 2009

Bloomberg Philanthropies Awards $125 Million for Global Road Safety Initiative

EMBARQ - The World Resources Institute Center for Sustainable Transport has announced that it is one of six organizations awarded a total of $125 million by Bloomberg Philanthropies to implement programs in low- and middle-income countries to prevent death and disability from road traffic crashes.

According to the World Health Organization, traffic accidents kill 1.2 million people and injure up to 50 million every year. Indeed, road traffic injuries are projected to be the fifth-leading cause of death globally by 2030. To help reverse these trends, the five-year effort funded by Bloomberg Philanthropies, the umbrella organization created to manage the charitable giving of New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg, will focus on ten countries representing nearly half (48 percent) of all traffic deaths globally.

In addition to EMBARQ and WHO, the initiative will partner with the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, the World Bank Global Road Safety Facility, the Global Road Safety Partnership, and the Association for Safe International Road Travel.

EMBARQ's programs will focus on incorporating sustainable transport and reduced emissions in urban planning. "Helmets and seatbelts are very important, but you also have to think about policies that protect all urban residents, not just transport users," said Nancy Kete, director of EMBARQ, which operates a network of Centers for Sustainable Transport in Mexico, Brazil, India, Turkey, and the Andean region. "We're tackling the problem at the root by considering all of the health and safety benefits associated with mass transit, cycling, walking, clean fuels and vehicles, and vibrant public spaces. These solutions not only provide safer streets, but they also lead to cleaner air, reduced carbon emissions, more physically active citizens, and greater social inclusion."