Road safety comparisons with international data on seriously injured

Reducing the number of fatalities is a key objective of road safety policy. As road safety improvements in Europe have decreased the number of fatalities, more focus has been directed to seriously injured. The aim of this study is to compare the different definitions of and international data on seriously injured, combine this data with fatality data and investigate the results and the conclusions for road safety policy. Particularly, a combined indicator of killed and seriously injured (KSI) is used in analysis. For comparing the amount of seriously injured in different countries, the definition recommended by the European Commission, the Maximum Abbreviated Injury Scale (MAIS) level 3+ was adapted. Based on the comparisons the use of a KSI indicator is recommended as it widens overall awareness of road safety performance. When analysing the amount of seriously injured and KSI, the results highlight bicycle, moped and motorcycle users compared to fatalities as an indicator. As sustainable mobility and urbanisation shape the future transport systems and increase the importance of cycling, adopting KSI indicator is increasingly important, but further research is needed to identify the best practices and define guidelines for gathering, reporting and analysing international data on seriously injured.