Road Traffic

Key Points

  • Always wear a seatbelt - it’s the simplest and most effective way to prevent serious injury or death.
  • Slow down and drive for conditions. Speed is a leading factor in road crashes and increases injury severity.
  • Drive or ride sober - alcohol, cannabis, and other drugs impair your ability to safely drive a vehicle or ride a bike or e-scooter.
  • Avoid distractions - stay focused whether you're driving, walking, or cycling.
  • Use designated crossings and obey traffic signals to protect yourself and others.

Why Road Traffic Injuries Matter.

Road traffic injuries are a significant public health concern in Alberta. In 2021, there were 15,933 reported collisions, resulting in 289 fatalities and 1,497 serious injuries.1

Transport incidents are the second-leading cause of injury hospitalizations and the third-leading cause of unintentional injury deaths in Canada.

Children and youth are particularly vulnerable. On average, 30 child pedestrians are killed, and 2,412 are injured each year in Canada. Most incidents occur between 3:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m., when drivers are returning home, and children are walking from school or after-school activities.2

These injuries can lead to long-term disabilities, emotional trauma, and significant economic costs. However, up to 90% of motor vehicle collisions are preventable through safe behaviours and roadway improvements.

A pedestrian struck by a car traveling at 50 km/h is almost six times more likely to be killed than a pedestrian struck at 30 km/h.

Road Traffic Injuries: By the Numbers

(Alberta, 2021)

15,933

COLLISIONS REPORTED

289

TRAFFIC FATALITIES

25%

OF FATAL COLLISIONS INVOLVE IMPAIRMENT

Preventing Road Traffic Injuries.

We are all road users as we participate in our daily activities. We travel to work and school, attend appointments and social engagements, shop for groceries and other items, and walk or ride bicycles for recreation and exercise. As road users, it is important that we all understand the traffic rules and practice good traffic safety behaviours as pedestrians, drivers, passengers and cyclists - this makes sure everyone arrives at their destination safely!

1. Drive Smart

  1. Always wear a seatbelt, even on short trips. Make sure everyone in the vehicle is using seatbelts, the correct car seat, or booster seat.
  2. Obey speed limits and adjust for weather or traffic conditions.
  3. Avoid distractions - put away your phone and stay focused.
  4. Be alert in residential areas and school zones.

2. Don’t Drive Impaired

  1. Never drive under the influence of alcohol, cannabis, or other impairing substances. Be aware that prescription and over-the-counter medications can also cause impairment!
  2. Plan ahead - use a designated driver, public transit, or ride service if you will be drinking alcohol, or using cannabis or other substances.
  3. Understand that even small amounts of substances can impair your reaction time. The amount of time it takes to notice impairment will vary from person to person depending on the substance used and the quantity.

3. Protect Vulnerable Road Users

  1. Yield to pedestrians and cyclists, especially at crosswalks and intersections.
  2. Give at least 1 metre of space when passing cyclists.
  3. Be extra cautious during low-light conditions, as 55% of pedestrian deaths occur at night or in low-light.

4. Pedestrian Safety Tips

  1. Always cross at crosswalks, street corners, or intersections - avoid crossing between parked cars.
  2. Stay on sidewalks; if unavailable, walk facing traffic as far from vehicles as possible.
  3. Teach children to stop at the curb, look left, right, and left again, and listen for oncoming traffic.
  4. Make eye contact for drivers that stop to allow you to cross.
  5. Continue watching for vehicles as you cross the road.
  6. Young children should be accompanied by an adult when crossing streets.

Wondering if your kids are old enough to cross the street on their own?

Young children can navigate simple street structure but the skills to navigate more complex environments develop around the ages of 9 to 11. Visit Parachute for a parent's guide to teaching kids about safe crossing.

Safer Roads, By Design.

A key component of traffic safety is to design our roads to accommodate mistakes that drivers may make that could result in collisions and injuries. This is called a Safe Systems Approach. Creating safer roads encourages safer driving, and keeps drivers, pedestrians, cyclists and other road users safe. Many communities in Alberta have adopted a Safe Systems Approach to road safety - the idea is that NO ONE should die or be seriously injured while travelling on the roadway.

You have likely encountered some of these safer roadway designs:

  • Improved crosswalks - high visibility, lighting, markings
  • Medians and pedestrian refuge islands
  • Bicycle lanes
  • Rumble strips
  • Roundabouts
  • Speed reductions in neighbourhoods

These designs provide layers of protection to prevent crashes and reduce the chances of serious injury if a crash occurs.3 As pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists and other road users, supporting road design or re-engineering strategies that ensure our safety, as well as that of our family, friends and neighbours,  should be an important priority for all of us.

Resources.

IPC Resources:

External Resources:

Get social.

Use these hashtags on social media to discuss this issue.

#WearTheGear #VisionZero #TrafficSafety

Updated 21 July, 2025.

References

1 https://open.alberta.ca/dataset/25020446-adfb-4b57-9aaa-751d13dab72d/resource/1d1f57ad-87b6-4846-86a3-68303a7058fb/download/tec-alberta-collision-statistics-2021.pdf

2 https://parachute.ca/en/program/vision-zero

3 https://www.transportation.gov/safe-system-approach/safer-roads

These Lands.

The University of Alberta, its buildings, labs, and research stations are primarily located on the territory of the Néhiyaw (Cree), Niitsitapi (Blackfoot), Métis, Nakoda (Stoney), Dene, Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) and Anishinaabe (Ojibway / Saulteaux), lands that are now known as part of Treaties 6, 7 and 8 and homeland of the Métis. The University of Alberta respects the sovereignty, lands, histories, languages, knowledge systems and cultures of all First Nations, Métis and Inuit nations.

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