Traffic Safety Footprint in Sustainability Practices and Reporting—Exploring the Views of Companies

Hanna Wennberg () and Pernilla Hyllenius Mattisson
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Hanna Wennberg: Department of Technology and Society, Lund University, 221 00 Lund, Sweden
Pernilla Hyllenius Mattisson: Trivector Traffic AB, 222 36 Lund, Sweden

Sustainability, 2024, vol. 16, issue 24, 1-26

Abstract: Road traffic accidents cause nearly 1.3 million deaths and around 50 million injuries each year globally. Most organisations generate travel and transport, and influence thereby traffic safety. In Sweden, 47 percent of fatal accidents in road traffic are work-related, and 36 percent are linked to a procured transport service. Effective approaches to managing traffic safety in organisations have not yet been established to advance traffic safety implementation, especially through sustainability practices and reporting. This study explores the untapped potential of improving traffic safety by addressing the traffic safety impact of organisations within the context of sustainability. Firstly, this study examines organisations’ views on traffic safety as a sustainability issue, and the status and driving forces in handling traffic safety as an integrated part of sustainability practices and reporting. Secondly, it identifies enablers for advancing traffic safety implementation in organisations with a focus on the sustainability context. The study is based on interviews with 22 organisations (mainly private companies) and analysis of 23 sustainability reports. It is concluded that sustainability is a relevant context for traffic safety for all organisations that consider traffic safety as a significant sustainability issue due to the travel and transport generated, directly or indirectly. However, traffic safety is generally not viewed as a sustainability issue and is rarely included in sustainability reports. Transport companies are more likely to consider traffic safety in the context of sustainability. Enablers concern the necessity to communicate traffic safety as a sustainability issue and to raise awareness of traffic safety as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Communication is needed to raise awareness among private and public organisations on their traffic safety footprint and possibilities to influence traffic safety. Furthermore, legislative directives and standards on sustainability reporting should explicitly include traffic safety. By integrating traffic safety in sustainability practices and reporting, organisations can more clearly draw from and utilise the positive synergies between traffic safety and other sustainability goals. Furthermore, such integration is a way to bring traffic safety issues up to the management level, facilitating leadership for traffic safety.

Keywords: Vision Zero; Safe System approach; road safety; traffic safety footprint; sustainability practices; sustainability reporting; goal integration; policy implementation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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