Bulgaria

Young people as drivers, pedestrians, cyclists and powered two-wheelers riders have a high road crash casualty rate and are often referred to as 'vulnerable road users' (VRU). Important characteristics include less experience, lack of external protection, lower speed and/or weight vis-a-vis motor vehicles in the case of pedestrians and cyclists. When participating in a road crash, VRUs are more likely to be seriously injured or killed than other traffic participants.

The safety of VRUs is still often seen as low priority in national and community transport policies and programming. In addition, 'experienced' drivers are often unaware of the issues faced by the group and may not recognize how their driving behaviour contributes to the challenges faced by them. Roads and transport professionals may also not recognize their needs and may view this road user group as low priority in comparison to the desire or public demand to maintain free movement of motor vehicles and reduce congestion or improve journey times.

A first important step in raising the level of safety for VRUs is to increase awareness among the public and decision-makers about casualties, risks and attitudes regarding the group. Policies and programmes can be put in place to protect their safety. Countries and communities that give priority to walking and cycling in transport planning create environments with a high quality of life as noise, pollution and congestion are reduced. A sustained plan of action involving infrastructure measures, education, publicity campaigns, training initiatives, and robust enforcement with consistent monitoring, evaluation, feedback and dissemination, has proven to be effective in of achieving measureable long term improvements in the safety of vulnerable road users.

This training package is intended for delivery to active young people, interested in improving safety of their peers, as well as other interested stakeholders. The training aims to provide guidance in preparing and implementing a programme to increase the safety of vulnerable road users. The training course is based a comprehensive PowerPoint presentation in combination with opportunities for trainee/facilitator interaction in the form of discussion, individual and group exercises. Case studies and examples have been derived from international sources to provide real life examples as a basis for discussion and comparison with similar or contrasting situations at the point of delivery of the training.

This is a one day course so facilitators need to be realistic about what can be achieved in a comparatively short period of time. At the end of the course, participants will understand issues pertaining to the safety of vulnerable road users and how a plan of action can support improvement of the situation. They will be able to identify the specific policies and interventions needed. They will obtain basic knowledge to help them design, monitor and evaluate an improvement programme for vulnerable road users in the local context.

Learning will take place through engaging with the facilitator and interactive learning through collaboration within the peer group.