IRF Chairman Hosts Comprehensive Safer Roads by Design™ Training Seminar

The Municipality of Riyadh hosted a comprehensive International Road Federation Safer Roads By Design™ Training Seminar in Riyadh from November 18 through November 21, 2012. The Mayor of Riyadh, Eng. Abdullah Al-Mogbel was the ideal host for this excellent, intense, training program that included Roadside, Work Zone, Vulnerable and Road Safety Audit training curriculums.

During the opening session, the Mayor emphasized the importance of road safety for all road users in Riyadh and the importance of continuing education to ensure the road authorities, consultants, contractors, law enforcement, and academia were aware of the state-of-the-art technologies and best practices being used in other parts of the world to make roads safe. Over 130 professionals attended the four-day seminar and along with the presenters, discussed how some of these concepts could be implemented in Saudi Arabia to meet the challenge of the Decade of Action to reduce road fatalities by 50% by 2020.

On the final day of the training program, a virtual road safety audit was conducted that included a major intersection of Riyadh as well as some of its roads. The virtual audit gave the attendees a real-world understanding of road safety countermeasures that had been presented during the previous three day of classroom activities.

After the course was completed, the participants left with a better understanding of the importance of properly tested roadside safety hardware, the many needs of all road users including pedestrians, bicyclists, motorcyclists and public transport users, and the importance of a properly designed work zones for not only motorists and pedestrians, but for workers as well. The attendees left the training seminar with additional Knowledge regarding a variety of road safety concepts, and a promise to use Prudence to make these concepts reality with the understanding that their actions will show their Wisdom once they save a motorist’s, pedestrian’s or a road worker’s life.

The Safer Roads By Design™ Training Seminar helped to fuel the attendees’ passion toward road safety. IRF Executive Vice President Michael Dreznes, who was a lead trainer and facilitator for the course, thanked the Mayor for providing an excellent venue for learning.

IRF President Patrick Sankey continued, the Mayor’s leadership is an inspiration to all governments around the world to Find A Way to achieve road safety progress.

On behalf of the entire leadership of IRF, special thanks to our sponsors Al-Falah Contracting Company, Saudi Consulting Services, Trinity Highway Products, Transpo Industries, and Barrier Systems.