Protecting Vulnerable Road Users from Injury

In its latest global assessment of road safety, the World Health Organization (WHO) reminded us that half of the 1.2 million fatalities occurring each year on the world’s roads concern vulnerable road users (VRUs), with children and elderly being overrepresented among victims [1]. ‘‘Vulnerable road user’’ is a term applied to those most at risk in traffic, i.e. those unprotected by an outside shield [2]. Pedestrians, pedal cyclists, and motor cyclists are accordingly considered as vulnerable since they benefit from little or no external protective devices that would absorb energy in a collision. They constitute with almost no exception the weak party in a road traffic crash. The aim of this article is to provide an overview of the global health problem posed by VRU injuries. Priorities regarding prevention initiatives for VRUs and barriers to effective policies are discussed in the context of both industrialised and developing countries.