An International
Centre of
Excellence in Road
Safety Research
Methods
Robyn Robertson & Ward Vanlaar
Traffic Injury Research Foundation
9th UN Road Safety Collaboration Meeting
Geneva, November 17-18, 2008
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Goals
Overview of the Traffic Injury Research
Foundation (TIRF).
Context for a major research initiative.
An International Centre of Excellence in
Road Safety Research Methods
mission and guiding principles;
target audience;
core activities;
structure;
partners and expertise.
Request for support.
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About TIRF
Established in Canada in 1964 as a registered
charity.
Highly respected scientific and technical staff
with over 70 years experience in road safety
research, evaluation and policy development.
Conducts 20 research projects annually with
funding from Canada, US, EU, and Australia.
Funding comes from primarily government, as
well as associations, and industry.
Governed by a Board of Directors from
government and the private sector in Canada and
the U.S.
Independence, objectivity, and creativity are
hallmarks of TIRF’s work.
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About TIRF
To prevent the health and social
consequences of traffic crashes by
designing, promoting, and
implementing effective programs,
policies and legislation based on sound
research.
Core activities:
Research on road user behavior & crashes;
Program and policy development;
Evaluation plans, program and policy
evaluation;
Knowledge transfer and exchange.
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What is the issue?
Good quality data are often not
available in the field of traffic safety
(GIGO).
Even when good quality data are
available, inappropriate or weak
analysis techniques are often
applied.
This results in a poor understanding
of the problem or critical factors.
This can lead to faulty conclusions
and a waste of limited resources.
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Why is it important?
Good quality data and appropriate
data analysis are the linchpin to
meaningful research.
Meaningful research is fundamental
to identifying effective prevention
policies and programs that reduce
deaths and injuries.
Such research is critical in LMIC,
given WHO’s projection that road
deaths in these countries will
escalate exponentially without
appropriate action.
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What is the impact?
In LMIC, there is a significant lack of
quality data; knowledge about data;
understanding of appropriate data
analysis techniques.
This leads to ineffective research,
programs and policies, and ultimately
an under-used potential for saving
lives.
There is high demand for education
about data and data analysis,
especially in LMIC.
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What is the response?
There has been limited action.
For example:
In 2007, a Nigerian delegate at the
ICADTS conference in Seattle publicly
criticized attendees for failing to
share information or expertise to
assist LMIC.
In 2007, a leading journal (Injury
Prevention) published an article
entitled “Road safety in LMIC: a
neglected research area”.
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The Centre of Excellence
To address road deaths and
injuries in LMIC, TIRF and 10
international partners have
formed a consortium to
develop an International
Centre of Excellence in Road
Safety Research Methods.
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About the Centre
The mission of the Centre is to “reduce
road traffic deaths and injuries in LMIC by
building knowledge and capacity in road
safety research methods and facilitating
the development of evidence-based road
safety interventions”.
Guiding principles include:
capacity building;
not-for-profit;
international focus;
synergy.
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Target audience
A range of traffic safety staff in
LMIC that require education,
support and guidance regarding
data management and analysis, and
the development and
implementation of evidence-based
practices can access the Centre:
researchers;
data managers and analysts;
educators and students;
practitioners and road safety program
managers.
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Core activities
Core activities of the Centre
include:
Education delivered by an annual
summer school and web-based
training courses;
Research support delivered using a
researcher-in-residence program;
Dissemination of knowledge
delivered using a bi-annual
symposium;
Free consulting services.
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Structure
The Centre is structured as an ‘institution
without walls’.
An Executive Committee is responsible
for strategic planning and the
achievement of long-term goals.
Daily operations of the Centre are to be
administered through a Permanent
Secretariat housed at TIRF.
Partners in the consortium will provide
researchers, teaching staff and assist with
the development of content for courses
and events.
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Partners
European Transport Safety Council
Transportation Research Institute, Hasselt University,
Belgium
SWOV Institute for Road Safety Research, Netherlands
National Technical University of Athens, Department of
Transportation Planning and Engineering, Greece
Centre interuniversitaire de recherche sur les réseaux
d’entreprise, la logistique et le transport, Université de
Montréal, Canada
University of North Carolina Highway Safety Research Centre
Data Nexus, Inc., Colorado
Monash University Accident Research Centre, Australia
Centre for Accident Research and Road Safety,
Australia
Universidad Alberto Hurtado, Chile
Strategic alliance with IRTAD is underway
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Areas of expertise
The Centre has 7 core areas of expertise:
research and evaluation designs (quantitative
and qualitative);
data collection (primary and secondary);
data storage and management;
basic statistics;
data mining;
time series analyses;
multilevel analyses.
Services will be offered in English and
French.
More study tracks and languages will be
added to the Centre as it expands.
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Demand for service
To date a number of
jurisdictions/organizations have
expressed an interest in using the
services that would be offered by the
Centre of Excellence in official letters of
endorsement or support.
Countries include:
Chile;
China;
Fiji;
Pakistan;
Vietnam.
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Request from TIRF
Funding (seed money or matching
funding or full funding), and/or
Your official endorsement of the Centre to
help us secure funding, and/or
Your official recognition of the need for a
Centre of Excellence, and your official
endorsement of the concept of such a
Centre to help us secure funding, and/or
Your support to build relationships with
potential sponsors.
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Staying informed
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