News
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Renewed commitment increases focus on cities and urban areas
São Paulo, Brazil (pictured) is one of ten cities selected as part of the second phase of Bloomberg Philanthropies' Global Road Safety Initiative. Photo by Mariana Gil/EMBARQ Brasil.
Today, Bloomberg Philanthropies announced the five countries and ten cities that will be the focus of its Global Road Safety Initiative, which aims to reduce traffic fatalities and injuries worldwide. The program will invest $125 million over five years to implement national road safety legislation and city-level road safety interventions that save lives.
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New Safe Access Manual from EMBARQ India lays out clear guidelines for planning and designing better transit stations
Cycling accounts for as much as half of all trips in some Indian cities. Photo by Benoit Colin/EMBARQ.
Indian cities are often burdened with intense traffic congestion, poor air quality, and inequitable access to transport.
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Action this year on sustainable cities and transport will shape development and quality of life for decades, say experts
Over two days, the Transforming Transportation 2015 conference explored solutions for sustainable, people-oriented mobility in cities worldwide. Photo by Taís Policanti/EMBARQ Mexico.
2015 is a pivotal year for the global sustainable development agenda. For the first time, cities will be a focal point and sustainable transport features clearly among the solutions. Global agreements expected over the next 12 months will lock in the choices we have about how to live, learn, work, and play in our cities for decades.
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Culmination of two-year long project brings safer streets to five Turkish cities
EMBARQ Turkey's RSLab project focuses on blackspot management, targeted interventions at dangerous intersections and roadways that yield significant safety benefits for all road users. Photo by Quinn Dombrowski/Flickr.
More than 1.2 million people worldwide are killed in road traffic crashes every year, and an additional 20 to 50 million are injured. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), if urgent action is not taken, these figures will increase by about 65 percent over the next 20 years, making road traffic crashes the fifth-leading cause of death by 2030.
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Improved planning and design of bus priority systems can benefit 31 million people every day
The new Traffic Safety on Bus Priority Corridors report shows how safe, sustainable street design—like the pedestrian refuge island shown here in Juiz de Fora, Brazil—can sive lives on city streets. Photo by Mariana Gil/EMBARQ Brasil.
Washington, DC (January 14, 2015)—One of the primary challenges associated with rapid global urbanization is how to ensure the safety of city streets. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), over 1.2 million people die on the world’s roads each year, and traffic crashes could become the fifth leading cause of death by 2030 without intervention.
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Photo by Mariana Gil/WRI Brasil Sustainable Cities
Editor's note: Read this media advisory in Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, or Turkish.
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Over 15,000 people participate in the city’s first sustained open streets movement
Mumbai’s inaugural Equal Streets event drew wide support, kicking off a citizen-driven movement that demands public spaces for people, not cars. Photo via Equal Streets/Facebook.
Editor's note: This post has been updated to include progress of the Equal Streets movement through the month of November.
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EMBARQ Brasil hosts four-day road safety training for technical experts in Rio de Janeiro
EMBARQ Brasil’s road safety training emphasized the importance of reducing vehicle speeds and designing complete streets, and gave participants the opportunity to work in Rio’s streets. Photo by Mariana Gil/EMBARQ Brasil.
Every year, about 1.24 million people lose their lives in traffic. In Brazil, there are over 44,000 traffic deaths annually. These fatalities exceed the death toll of many wars, motivating experts to seek effective solutions.
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The popular weekly car-free streets event – now in five Indian cities – was selected for its innovative approach in engaging communities
On September 21, 2014, Bhopal (pictured) became the fifth city in India to implement the weekly open streets movement, Raahgiri Day. Photo by Raahgiri Day, Bhopal/Facebook.
Raahgiri Day was selected as a distinguished finalist and received an honorable mention at the 2014 Parivartan Sustainability Leadership Awards. The awards were announced at the evening meeting of the Annual Summit of the Sustainable Business Leadership Forum on October 16, 2014 in New Delhi, India.
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Neighborhood Improvement Plan wins the Safer Roads, Safer India Challenge
The Hosur Sarjapur Road (HSR) Neighborhood Improvement Plan is being recognized for its engagement with citizens and ability to improve safety and quality of life. Photo by Frederik_Rowing/Flickr.
On September 24, 2014, Ashoka Changemakers and Underwriters Laboratories (UL) announced the Hosur Sarjapur Road (HSR) Neighborhood Improvement Plan as a winner of the “Safer Roads, Safer India: Game Changing Innovations that Save Lives” Challenge.