Invisible Cause of Death in Global Road Safety Crisis: A New Paradigm

Global road safety is a complex problem. Annually 1.4 million people are killed, while over 50 million are injured in road traffic crashes worldwide. It endangers the victims' life or health and has a heavy social and economic impact on their families, on medical facilities, and the nation's economy. There have been numerous global efforts by the UN, WHO, World Bank, among others, to address the road safety crisis. According to research, human error is the root cause of 90% of crashes, which is largely attributed to the driver. In 2006, a serendipitous idea led to my discovery of the invisible primary cause of road traffic deaths and injuries - the obstruction of the driver's field of vision by the blind region of the A-pillar in all vehicles, which is a universal design flaw. Road traffic crashes are difficult to avert if vehicles and other road users or objects are invisible to the driver before the crash. Thus, this problem, including its proposed A1-pillar design solution, was conveyed to the UN, WHO, among others, in 2006. In spite of the positive response, these organisations did not pursue it. Despite commendable efforts by global institutions and governments, stricter traffic laws, and automotive safety technology advancements, road traffic deaths and injuries are steadily increasing. Could a key causative factor have been ignored so far? Thus, this article explores the blind region created by the A-pillar and offers a sustainable design solution for new vehicles as well as a retrofit idea for existing ones. Urgent action is needed to validate and overcome this major causative factor in road traffic deaths and injuries worldwide. Along with the existing global road safety measures, this comprehensive solution has the potential to help resolve the global road safety crisis and save lives.