Today is the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims (WDoR), which is commemorated on the third Sunday of November each year and is dedicated to remembering the many millions of road traffic victims throughout the world.
It is a solemn day for us to remember the vulnerable road uses–bikers and walkers–who lost their lives on Fairfax County roads this year. So far in 2021, 12 people have been killed biking, walking, and riding a skateboard in Fairfax County. Many more people were injured in serious crashes or were subject to “near misses.”
WDoR 2021 seeks to provide a platform for road traffic victims and their families to:
- remember all people killed and seriously injured on the roads;
- acknowledge the crucial work of the emergency services;
- draw attention to the generally trivial legal response to culpable road deaths and injuries
- advocate for better support for road traffic victims and victim families;
- promote evidence-based actions to prevent and eventually stop further road traffic deaths and injuries.
The day’s slogan is “Remember, Support, Act.” Supporters in 2021 are highlighting the goal of reducing traffic speeds, which has the potential to prevent many deaths and serious injuries, in particular those of bikers and other vulnerable road users.
On World Day, we pay tribute to the dedicated emergency crews, police, and medical professionals, and others who deal with the traumatic aftermath of road crashes.
