SAFER shares its research at Transportforum
This year's edition of Transportforum was well attended and approximately 1,600 participants visited the important meeting. For two days, the Swedish elite in transport research gathered in Linköping to share and discuss the latest findings. It is clear that Sweden has the continued ambition of maintaining the leadership in safe and sustainable mobility and that the UN's global sustainability goals are well under way in being implementing in national strategies, as well as at many companies, colleges and institutes.
SAFER was present at the event to share knowledge, discuss research and plan for future activities to help support the quest for implementation of a safe mobility system. Important topics that were discussed covered e.g. automated vehicles, unprotected road users, the base speed in city areas and the Vision Zero strategy.
Many lives can be saved with proper care
Many fatalities in traffic could be avoided if the injured in a traffic accident get faster and proper care. SAFER held a session on this important topic and presented research showing that nearly 100 people could be saved per year in Sweden - if properly care and rescue was implemented.
Bengt Arne Sjöqvist, SAFER's research area director for Care & Rescue, says:
"Two thirds of the fatalities occur within 1 hour after the accident is a fact and our studies show that one third could actually be prevented".
SAFER's project Via Appia is an example that could help provide better care and rescue after traffic accidents. The project has shown that using the information generated in the vehicle in combination with smartphone solutions that contains individual information and adding information from other sources contribute to a good analyze of the accident that can help prepare the following care much better.
Digital tools
SAFER also presented an app developed to protect motorcyclists. If an accident occurs the emergency service is called automatically. The researchers believe that nearly 2500 lives could be saved within the EU per year if the app was used by all drivers.
Finally, SAFER researchers discussed the importance of patients being transported to the most appropriate healthcare facility. Sometimes it may be better to drive past a hospital for a more customized care elsewere. However, Robert Sinclair, medical adviser in the Västra Götaland region and member of SAFER's network, claims that this requires clear structures, criterias and knowledge. Driving past a healthcare facility for another far away, although better for the patient, can be very difficult to actually do.
"There is a need for support at the time of the decision and a great deal of support when the decision has been taken," says Robert Sinclair.
