Ending the 'horrifying violence on our streets'

This is why Vision Zero is important. Because behind each of the thousands of deaths on the grim dashboard of KSI (killed and seriously injured) statistics is a life denied, a family permanently scarred, a community living in fear. And because we know through a systematic approach to the problem, this pain is preventable. By Mat MacDonald, Road Safety Commissioner for the West Midlands

When an adult using a machine subjects a child to an act of horrifying violence on our streets, outrage is the only reasonable response. When that act does not exist in isolation, but is instead part of a pattern of death, injury and devastation affecting people of all ages and playing out on a daily basis, it is a social crisis.

And when we fail to call it by its name, to address it head on, and to allocate the resources required to prevent it, we are guilty of a profound dereliction of our duties to one another as human beings.

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Meet Mat at Delivering Vision Zero on 30 June in Birmingham

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This is why Vision Zero is important. Because behind each of the thousands of deaths on the grim dashboard of KSI (killed and seriously injured) statistics is a life denied, a family permanently scarred, a community living in fear. And because we know through a systematic approach to the problem, this pain is preventable.

Here in the West Midlands we have a serious issue with road violence. In Birmingham, our largest city, someone is killed on average every fortnight on the roads. Across the region, scores of people suffer life changing injuries in crashes every month.

And although no monetary value can ever be placed on this most human of losses, the economic damage collisions create in their wake costs us £444 million every single year.

Taking action

That’s why we’re taking action. The safety of our roads has been a particular focus for Mayor Richard Parker since coming into office in 2024. In August of that year, he co-signed a declaration setting out the need for emergency action on the issue alongside the Police and Crime Commissioner, Chief Commissioner of West Midlands Police and the leadership of Birmingham City Council. I

n January 2025 he appointed me as the UK’s first Road Safety Commissioner, to help co-ordinate the excellent work our partner organisations across the region are doing towards safer streets for everyone who uses them. 

Our objective is critical: halving KSI numbers for the region by 2030 and eliminating road death altogether by 2040. 

It’s a mission which has no chance of succeeding without the vital contribution of Beccy Marston, the region’s Active Travel Commissioner. 

Because without getting people out of their cars we will never make our roads safer, and without making our roads safer, we will never unlock the huge potential of active travel to foment that shift.

There’s so much work to do. But with the new national road safety strategy announced by government earlier this year, this truly feels like a moment that is ours for the taking

In the pursuit of these inextricably intertwined objectives, Beccy and I have set ourselves a singular goal - that the streets of our region should be safe for children to walk, wheel and cycle.

Not only because we have a moral obligation to keep children safe in the spaces we share, but also because this standard will ensure that everyone who uses our road network can do so free from fear, making our neighbourhoods the desirable, integrated and prosperous centres that residents deserve.

To achieve this, we are taking an altogether new approach to delivering the transformations we need to build a less car reliant future.

Our flagship Kids Streets projects will put children in charge of the streetscapes they inhabit, empowering our most vulnerable, overlooked and imaginative demographic to build the communities of the future, where road danger is minimised, streets are a source of pride and sustainable travel between them is readily accessible to all.

We are exceptionally proud to be launching this project at the conference in June, setting out the freedom, wellbeing and connectivity which our neighbourhoods can enjoy in a Vision Zero world.

We’re delighted to be hearing directly from two of our award winning young Active Travel Ambassadors who will help open the event by sharing their vision for the safer streets of the future.

But we’re under no illusions about the scale of the task that faces us in achieving this. And that’s why the focus of this conference won’t just be to outline what’s possible in a world free from road violence, in terms of safety, public health, and sustainability in transport. 

This event will, most crucially of all, meticulously set out the best evidence based interventions for making our streets safer, as well as providing insight from across a broad spectrum of academics, campaigners and politicians into how to effect these changes. 

So whether it’s learning about the most up to date research into reshaping our roads, finessing your ability to land messaging where it counts through our communication skills training, or networking with professionals at the cutting edge of delivering a safer, healthier and more sustaianable transport system, there’s something at this conference for you.

There’s so much work to do. But with the new national road safety strategy announced by government earlier this year, this truly feels like a moment that is ours for the taking. And if you want to be part of the journey towards turning this vision into a reality, mapping out a stepwise route to a brighter future and advocating with one voice for the resourcing required to make it happen, be sure to book your place while you can.