The Development of a Road Safety Strategy for the Gulf State of Qatar

In 2006, the Persian Gulf state of Qatar commissioned a consortium of international consultants to develop an integrated Transportation Master Plan.
A part of that Master Plan was a Brief to develop a Road Safety Strategy for the nation.
This paper summarises the development of that Strategy, and outlines the key issues associated with traffic safety within Qatar.
In common with many rapidly growing nations, Qatar was experiencing a traffic fatality rate (in population terms) of about five times that experienced by many Western nations, including Australia. Like other Gulf states, Qatar had undergone rapid economic and social growth in the past several decades, but had not benefited from an evolved road safety culture which had existed in the US, Western Europe and Australia.
Thus, while in recent years there had been a rapid increase in motorisation and provision of road infrastructure, there had been a lag in the necessary ?framework? to ensure the safe management of that motorisation.