CONFÉRENCE EUROPÉENNE DES MINISTRES DES TRANSPORTS
EUROPEAN CONFERENCE OF MINISTERS OF TRANSPORTRESOLUTION No. 91/3 ON THE
IMPROVEMENT OF ROAD SAFETY FOR THE ELDERLY[CEMT/CM(91)15]

The Council of Ministers of Transport, meeting in Antalya on 22 and 23 May 1991,

HAVING REGARD to the report on road safety for the elderly;

REFERRING to Resolution No. 54 (1985), Resolution No. 63 (1987), Resolution No. 68 (1989)
concerning transport for people with mobility handicaps, as well as to Resolution No. 71(1990) concerning access for people with mobility handicaps to buses, trains and coaches;

CONSIDERING:-- that elderly people constitute a large proportion of today’s population and that theproportion will continue to increase in the coming decades;-- that the proportion of total accidents involving elderly people is greater than theproportion of elderly people in the total population;-- that safety when travelling, irrespective of the means of transport used, is aprerequisite for ensuring the mobility of the elderly and a priority objective of any
comprehensive transport policy;

RECOGNISING:-- that the participation of the elderly in traffic is to be considered both for its security
aspect and its social dimension related to mobility needs;-- that decision-makers and traffic planners do not always have sufficient information of
the travel requirements of the elderly, the kind of difficulties experienced by them, andthe implications from the standpoint of safety;-- that the measures taken to facilitate travel for the elderly and improve safety also
benefit other categories of user;

RECOMMENDS Member countries:
Regarding information, education and control of capabilities
1. To encourage information campaigns aimed at drawing the attention of the elderly totraffic problems and risks by means of straightforward, factual and unambiguous
messages.

2. To inform all road users of the difficulties experienced by the elderly in traffic and toremind them of their obligations towards such persons.
3. To make medical and health service personnel aware of their obligation to inform theelderly of the consequences of the physical and physiological changes that occur in theageing process and may affect their behaviour in traffic.
4. To define principles and methods for testing the capabilities of elderly drivers and toencourage them to take further training courses to improve their theoretical and practicalability.

Regarding infrastructure
5. To give special consideration to the elderly when designing or improving roadinfrastructures, in particular to plan the routes taken by pedestrians with a view toproviding safe conditions by ensuring that traffic lights at pedestrian crossings havesufficiently long phases; to simplify complicated intersections, for example byseparating two-way traffic by means of central islands that are easily reached; to plansafe and easy means of access to bus stops.

In the construction and design of vehicles
6. To use technical means to improve the safety of persons boarding and alighting frombuses, as well as within the vehicles themselves.
7. To encourage manufacturers to improve and further develop driving aids (power
steering, automatic transmission, electrically-controlled windows, etc.) and to design thefront sections of vehicles in such a way as to limit the severity of injuries in the event ofa collision.
8. To invite bicycles manufacturer to improve the brakes, lighting and reflectors.

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