If a scooter has ever shot past you on a Rome sidewalk, a taxi driver has negotiated a wet mountain road while texting, or a bus has barreled through a marked pedestrian crossing, you know that traffic laws often diverge from reality.
Aerial images of the planet’s web of highways can be awe-inspiring and overwhelming, but road safety depends on many specifics. Beyond visible features like maintenance, signage and pavement condition, an essential element is how a government and its people regard road safety. Formal traffic laws and the degree to which they are enforced matter, but so does the prevailing road culture.
Traffic near Porta Nuova, Palermo, Sicily © Vvoeva le | Dreamstime.com
In parts of Italy, for example, wide zebra crossings and traffic lights create the impression that pedestrians hold right of way. In practice, local driving behavior often asserts the opposite: drivers, sports cars and scooters dominate crossings, and pedestrians must react defensively. Such cultural norms shape daily risk more than the posted rules do.
The human cost is enormous. An estimated 1.24 million people die and about 50 million are injured each year in road crashes worldwide, many of which could be prevented. Road crashes are the leading cause of death among healthy Americans traveling abroad. The U.S. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health also estimates that 20 to 30 percent of crashes are work-related; including commuting raises that figure further.
Risk does not always correlate with a country’s level of development, your personal driving record, or how often you travel internationally. Whether you plan to drive or not, corporate travelers should learn local traffic regulations, road conditions and common practices before departure.
“When traveling internationally, you may encounter traffic and road conditions that differ significantly from that of your home country,” says William R. Halliday, director of global security for Marsh & McLennan Companies. “Traffic laws, vehicle quality, road conditions, and the level of adherence to traffic regulations and common courtesies may be different. Whether driving, being driven or walking, it is important to educate yourself about your destination before you travel.”
Rochelle Sobel, founder and director of the Association for Safe International Road Travel (ASIRT), turned a personal tragedy into long-term advocacy after her son Aron died in a road crash in Turkey in 1995. Through education and partnerships, she has worked to raise awareness of road safety worldwide.
“Enforcement is key,” Sobel says. “Many countries underestimate the cost of road crashes. Often the person killed or injured is the family’s breadwinner, which creates enormous hardship and economic loss — medical costs, rehabilitation, the loss of income. High crash rates also harm tourism. Countries that depend on visitors sometimes don’t realize how much a crash involving tourists affects their industry.”
Rochelle Sobel speaks about her son on behalf of the Association for Safe International Road Travel. © Association for Safe International Road Travel
Sobel stresses that many road deaths are preventable. Simple measures — seat belts, helmets, child restraints, visible crosswalks, good lighting and strict limits on drinking and driving — save lives. Political will and investment are required to change infrastructure and enforcement. She also emphasizes language: calling incidents “crashes” rather than “accidents” recognizes that many are avoidable and shifts attitudes away from fatalism.
ASIRT works with government agencies, embassies and businesses to promote road safety globally, and partners on initiatives like the Bloomberg Global Road Safety Project and other international efforts. These collaborations aim to improve awareness, policies and practical measures that reduce risk.
“Business travelers should be aware of local driving customs and behavior,” says Mike Watson, global road safety manager at Shell International Petroleum Co. “They need to prepare, even as passengers. Some countries restrict night driving because infrastructure makes it unsafe. Journey planning — including emergency contacts, recommended routes and routes to avoid — helps travelers reduce exposure to risk.”
Gathering reliable information can be difficult, so ASIRT produces Road Travel Reports with country-specific guidance on laws, driving culture, hazardous routes, transportation choices and embassy contacts. Many companies incorporate such guidance into their travel policies to meet duty-of-care obligations and keep employees safe.
“We provide employees with access to public and private road and vehicle safety information and encourage its use in pre-trip planning,” Halliday says. “With staff traveling to many countries, understanding travel-related risks is essential. More than one million traffic-related fatalities worldwide each year represent a frequently overlooked travel risk.”
A taxi speeds along a Bangkok street © Steve Allen | Dreamstime
Sobel notes that more than 90 percent of road fatalities occur in low- and middle-income countries, and each location presents unique hazards: nonfunctioning traffic lights in cities with rolling blackouts, arbitrary fines by local police, or pedestrian crossings that drivers ignore. Every traveler is a pedestrian at some point and should assume crossings may not be respected.
Travelers must assess options: is the local bus system maintained and regulated, or is a vetted taxi provider safer? Is night travel discouraged? Will drivers be rested and sober? Passengers should feel empowered to question unsafe driving and choose alternatives when necessary.
Since her son’s death, Sobel has raised road safety awareness at the United Nations and in many forums. The U.S. State Department, which once lacked road safety guidance for travelers, now provides consular information about road risks and collaborates with ASIRT. Global initiatives, including U.N. resolutions, WHO collaborations and public-private partnerships, are improving visibility of the issue.
Despite progress, roads remain hazardous. Travelers can reduce their risk by seeking reliable, destination-specific information, planning journeys carefully, using approved transport providers, and insisting on basic safety measures. Being informed and cautious helps ensure that the road you take will lead you safely home.