Costa Rica’s Award Winning Minister of Transport Karla Gonzalez attends Make Roads Safe Launch
Karla Gonzalez, the Minister of Transport of Costa Rica, was a guest speaker at the launch of the report of the Commission for Global Road Safety and highlighted the importance that the newly elected government of President Oscar Arias places on road safety.
Presenting an overview of her Ministry’s road safety strategy, Karla Gonzalez warmly welcomed the Make Roads Safe report and, in particular, its emphasis on investment in better roads to reduce traffic fatalities. ‘This report is so important to us; it gives us the practical ideas on how to make roads safe in Costa Rica and hopefully it will encourage the leaders of the G8 to make the issue a global priority’.
After the launch, the Minister visited Silverstone to meet with 7 times World Champion Michael Schumacher who represents Germany in the Commission for Global Road Safety. Schumacher told the Minister that he was “more than proud to have been involved in preparing the report, and delighted to meet a Minister with a prove track record of success in road safety”.
In 2003 and 2004, as Vice Minister of Transport, Karla Gonzalez played a key role in the ‘Por Amor’ seat belt campaign. This FIA Foundation supported initiative combined new seat belt legislation, with a public awareness and police enforcement campaign and resulted in a substantial increase in seat belt wearing rates. The campaign has won the prestigious 2005 Prince Michael International Road Safety Award.
During her visit to London, Minister Gonzalez also held meetings with the UK Department for Transport (DfT), the International Road Assessment Programme (iRAP) and with the FIA Foundation. At DfT senior UK officials briefed the Minister on the UK’s road safety strategy and their experience in successfully reducing road traffic deaths and injuries. Meeting with the John Dawson, the Chairman of iRAP, Karla Gonzalez discussed plans to run a pilot project in Costa Rica to develop a safety rating system for the countries road network. At the Foundation the Minister discussed the forthcoming Latin and Central American Regional Road Safety Forum that will be held in Costa Rica’s capital San Jose on September 13 and 14 this year.
http://www.fiafoundation.com/policy/roa ... aunch.html
