Appendix D
U.S. Government Agencies Participating in Interviews
Listed below are the departments and agencies from which staff were interviewed in preparation for the workshop, with a brief description of the activities of each office related to road safety in other countries.
Department of Defense
Office of the Secretary of Defense, Safety, Health, and Fire Protection
Protects members of the department and the military in the United States and abroad. Safety, Health, and Fire Protection sets overall department policy, which is implemented by each military branch. Activities related to global road safety include maintaining databases of crashes, analyzing risks, and establishing road safety rules for personnel and safety requirements for vehicles.
Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, School of Medicine, Department of Preventive Medicine and Biometrics
The university is a federal institution of learning. It graduates 155 uniformed service members per year in programs in medicine and public
health and conducts research. Relevant activities include integrating injury prevention into the health sciences curriculum and conducting research on road injury risks to department personnel.
Department of Health and Human Services
Office of the Secretary, Office of Global Health Affairs, International Health Office for the Americas
Provides leadership and coordination for department programs with other countries. Facilitates sharing information and connecting people with expertise and resources.
National Institutes of Health, Fogarty International Center, Trauma and Injury Research Training Program
Addresses global health challenges through collaborative research and training grants that fund U.S. institutions to work with developing countries to build capacity for research and address health problems in the country. Professionals from developing countries receive advanced education to prepare them to conduct research in their home countries.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Division of Unintentional Injury Prevention
Averting or reducing health threats from abroad to U.S. citizens is part of the mandate of DHHS and CDC. The National Center for Injury Prevention and Control partners with other federal agencies; international, national, state, and local organizations; state and local health departments; and research institutions to reduce injuries and associated costs outside the workplace. The emphasis is on data collection and monitoring of trends in all injury-related mortality and morbidity and on injury prevention strategies. Road traffic injuries are included within the broad area of injury prevention. Relevant current activities include technical assistance to other countries’ ministries of health to develop the capacity for collection of injury data and training and technical assistance to researchers and technical workers from other countries.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics, Office of Analysis and Epidemiology
Oversees the International Collaborative Effort on Injury Statistics, which provides a forum for international exchange and collaboration among injury researchers. The goals are to develop and promote international standards in the collection and analysis of injury data. Traffic injuries are included, and some developing countries participate.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Division of Safety Research, Surveillance and Field Investigations Branch
Conducts data collection, analysis, and research on surveillance methods and forms partnerships to improve occupational health surveillance. One of the three strategic goals of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health is the enhancement of global workplace safety and health through international collaborations. Almost all occupational research related to road traffic safety could be applicable to developing countries. Relevant activities include chairing an international worldwide consortium of government agencies, universities, and private-sector organizations— the Global Network of Occupational Health Centers, made up of the WHO Collaborating Centers in Occupational Health. The member agencies are developing a work plan and carry out joint projects.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Coordinating Office for Global Health
Establishes strategies for international work within CDC and provides resources for other CDC groups to carry out technical work internationally. CDC works in partnerships, particularly with ministries of health or international organizations, to improve global health, including global road safety.
Department of State
Undersecretary for Global Affairs, Overseas Motor Vehicle Safety Management Program
Oversees a fleet of 10,000 motor vehicles operated abroad by the Department of State. Coordinates motor vehicle control and safety policies for the
department. Activities include vehicle inspection, driver training, crash investigations, and maintenance and analysis of crash data.
Bureau of Consular Affairs, Directorate of Overseas Citizens Services, Office of American Citizens Services and Crisis Management
Promotes awareness among Americans abroad of the risks of road travel and reports on road and traffic conditions in other countries so Americans will have facts on which to base informed decisions about their travel and activities. The office also reports on nonnatural causes of death among Americans abroad, including deaths due to road accidents, and publishes consular information sheets with facts relating to road conditions and traffic safety issues for 200 countries.
Department of Transportation
Office of the Secretary, Office of International Transportation and Trade
Has the objective of ensuring a global market that is safe, secure, and available to U.S. interests. The office manages international programs for the Secretary of Transportation with regard to transportation safety for all modes—aviation, rail, road, and marine. The secretary seeks to raise awareness of global road safety at bilateral and multilateral meetings and international conferences.
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Office of Traffic Injury Control, Program Development and Delivery
NHTSA administers traffic safety programs and provides national leadership and technical assistance to states, local communities, and others. It is primarily a domestic agency, but with new authority from Congress to be engaged in global road traffic safety, it can work explicitly on traffic safety at the international level, primarily through international organizations and with industrialized countries to identify their best practices. The office’s responsibilities include research relating to impaired driving, occupant protection, enforcement and criminal justice, speed management, pedestrian and bicycle safety, motorcycle and pupil transportation safety, and emergency medical services. Relevant activities include providing U.S. representation on two UN Economic Commission for Europe working parties related to traffic safety—
WP1 on best practices and WP29 on harmonization of vehicle regulations— and on the steering committee of the Global Road Safety Partnership.
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Office of International Policy, Fuel Economy, and Consumer Programs
Serves as primary liaison for NHTSA’s international work related to vehicular standards and driver and behavioral issues.
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Office of Strategic and Program Planning
Develops the strategic plan for NHTSA and for specific topics. NHTSA’s current plan for international activities calls for work with international partners to improve global traffic safety and to establish, improve, and harmonize traffic safety data collection systems.
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, National Center for Statistics and Analysis
Collects, analyzes, and disseminates data on traffic safety and evaluates NHTSA programs. The center is working with international organizations on projects designed to improve traffic safety data in several countries.
Federal Highway Administration, Office of Safety Programs, Office of International Programs
FHWA manages the federal program to provide funding and technical support to state and local government road agencies. Its international activities include informing the domestic highway community of technological innovations in other countries and promoting U.S. highway transportation expertise in other countries to encourage the transfer of U.S. highway transportation technology to foreign countries. Technology transfer centers in 22 countries are supported.
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, Policy and Program Development, North American Borders Division
FMCSA administers safety regulations governing the operation of large trucks and buses in the United States. Under the terms of the North
American Free Trade Agreement, it works with the governments of Canada and Mexico to develop compatible commercial motor carrier safety requirements and procedures throughout North America for vehicles entering the United States.
U.S.Agency for International Development
Bureau of Global Health, Office of Health, Infectious Disease, and Nutrition, Child Survival and Health Grants Program
Makes grants to nongovernmental organizations, including private voluntary organizations, to build the capacity of medical service infrastructure and ensure the quality of services for improving children’s health in other countries. Grants can fund programs for road traffic safety for children. The Office of Health, Infectious Disease, and Nutrition also operates programs that provide assistance to other countries addressing broader health issues.
Bureau of Global Health, Office of Health, Infectious Disease, and Nutrition, Maternal and Child Health Team
Supports programs designed to improve maternal and child health in developing countries. None of these programs currently addresses road safety specifically.
Bureau for Economic Growth, Agriculture, and Trade, Office of Infrastructure and Engineering
Responsible for USAID road-building and improvement projects. Road safety is regarded as integral to all projects rather than as a separate category.
Global Development Alliances Secretariat
A new program that promotes the formation of public–private partnerships supporting international development projects. It has held discussions with the Global Road Safety Partnership and others on road safety, but no projects focusing on this problem are under way.
U.S. Peace Corps, Office of Safety and Security
Responsible for the safety of staff and volunteers in 77 countries. The office establishes policies with regard to safe travel and vehicle use and assesses the safety of transportation in the countries where Peace Corps staff work.
U.S. Trade and Development Agency
Creates commercial opportunities abroad for U.S. companies. Examples of agency activities are provision of technical assistance to other countries to develop trade regulations and analysis to define and assess the financial viability of business opportunities. Projects are funded on the basis of a proposal from the other country, often with a U.S. partner. Projects to help U.S. companies procure transportation-related contracts abroad (e.g., providing traffic management systems) may have road safety implications.
