THE ROLE OF THE ACADEMIC COMMUNITY IN ROAD SAFETY

Road safety is a complex, multidisciplinary systemic problem whose lasting and measurable improvement cannot be achieved without a science-based approach. This paper systematizes and analyzes the roles that the academic community plays within the road safety system, starting from the premise that no other societal actor – neither the state, nor industry, nor the civil sector – is able, on its own, to ensure continuous monitoring of international knowledge, the creation of new knowledge, the education of professional personnel, and independent, evidence-based evaluation of road safety measures. Drawing on the multi-decade experience of the Faculty of Transport and Traffic Engineering, University of Belgrade, the paper identifies and elaborates eight interrelated roles of the academic community: knowledge transfer, research and projects, creation of new knowledge, application of new knowledge in practice, student education, training and continuous professional development, cooperation and support to other road safety stakeholders, and dissemination of knowledge. Particular attention is given to the significance of these roles for local self-government units, which frequently lack the capacity to independently conduct analyses, prepare strategic documents, or perform expert evaluation of measures, and therefore depend substantially on cooperation with the academic community. The paper concludes that investment in road safety science is a highly cost-effective investment, and that without it, improvements in road safety will remain slow, incidental, or absent altogether.