Road safety funding needs a transformation to address preventable road traffic crashes worldwide, according to a new report by the FIA Foundation highlighting the critical gaps in funding and commitment to road safety.

The report, 'Life Support: Advancing the Global Agenda for Financing & Action on Road Safety,' launches ahead of the 4th Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety, provides an in-depth analysis of global road safety financing through Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs). It highlights successful, replicable projects and offers a roadmap for accelerating progress toward safer roads worldwide.

It identifies four key areas for urgent action which are: Increase levels of financing for road safety initiatives; strengthen government commitment and capacity to implement solutions; scale up effective, evidence-based interventions to reduce road traffic injuries; and integrate funding streams for road safety, sustainable transportation, and climate resilience.

As the world enters the final five years of the Sustainable Development Goals, with the target to halve global road deaths, progress remains uneven. While some countries have successfully reduced fatalities, many others are struggling to keep up, posing a significant challenge to economic development and public health. MBD financing safe system programmes, including the World Bank's 'mass action' financing, results-based financing, and policy-based lending.

Currently, MDBs dedicate just over $700 million per year to road safety, but at least double that catalytic financing is needed to achieve global targets, paired with stronger national budget commitments, enhanced technical capacity, and strategic collaboration with private investment and climate finance initiatives. In Bangladesh, a $358 million World Bank-financed initiative aims to cut fatal crashes by 30% by 2027. A São Paulo, Brazil public-private partnership (PPP) blended financing, supported by the Inter-American Development Bank and World Bank, is expected to prevent over 30,000 deaths and serious injuries.

The report underscores that countries lose up to 5% of GDP due to road traffic crashes, which is comparable to the amount typically invested in transportation and infrastructure. This unsustainable economic burden calls for a step-change in funding and financing mechanisms to implement effective road safety measures.

Avi Silverman, Deputy Director of the FIA Foundation, said: "Governments, international institutions, and private sector stakeholders have to align their efforts to accelerate action. The clock is ticking for meaningful progress to be made on road traffic deaths before 2030. We know the solutions, the strategies are proven, and the need is urgent. A global step-change from Multilateral Development Banks in financing and commitment to road safety is vital and achievable."