Elementary School-Based Road Safety Education: Systematic Review Compilation

The disparity between LMIC and HIC child pedestrian safety is significant. Overall, pedestrians accounted for 16% of US traffic crash deaths in 2017. The number of 5 to 9 year old pedestrians killed in the US was 47, representing 0.79% of all pedestrian casualties and 0.13% of all police-reported traffic deaths. A total of 214 pedestrians age 14 and younger were killed, representing 3.6% of all pedestrian fatalities and 0.6% of motor vehicle fatalities. The fatality rate for 5 to 9 year olds was approximately one-tenth of the rate for adults, and the rate for all children ages 14 and under was approximately one-fifth of the rate for adults.
The fact that the effects of school-based road safety programs cannot be quantified in terms of crash reduction does not mean that they have no effect, particularly in more indirect pathways across the lifespan. For example, there are broader factors of importance for pedestrian education – instilling road safety as a core life skill, creating a culture of safety, challenging cultural beliefs (e.g., fatalism), engaging children in the road safety conversation, grass roots level change, elevation of road safety as a key public health issue, and so forth. Thus, while it is inconclusive whether education is effective in isolation, it should form part of a broader strategy that assists children in developing the skills required to use the roadway system safely throughout their lives.