Before the commencement of the project, the Road Traffic Safety (RTS) situation in Łódź did not look good. According to the data by the City Police Headquarters, in 2011 38 people were killed in 9508 road accidents, and in 2012 - 33 people in 9101 accidents. 61% of victims were pedestrians. The prepared RTS was not accepted (in spite of the President’s pledge to publish it by November 2011).
The project was to increase the Łódź residents’ influence upon the decisions and actions aimed at securing RTS and high quality of urban space, as well as to empower them and provide them with the appropriate knowledge and tools to influence the decisions of civil servants and decision makers.
Thanks to the project, which lasted for almost two years, it was possible to contact city and district councillors, as well as housing cooperatives, and equip them with essential RTS competences. More than anything, it was possible to reach more than 10 thousand people with educational materials. 4 traffic arrangement designs were prepared, of which one has already been implemented in the Karolew estate, and the other will be introduced in the estate of Stoki. The relatively fast and inexpensive solution used in Karolew proved to other district councils that improved safety does not necessarily have to require large expenses and years of investment. Thanks to the project, we have a model speed–30 zone. Scenarios created as part of the project, after methodical consultation, will be available for use all over Poland, by local authorities, institutions and NGOs. All the materials are available online (on the basis of a CC-BY-SA licence) on the project’s website, which at the moment constitutes a unique compendium of RTS knowledge, presented in an accessible and easy form.
The project benefited the residents of Łódź, the city authorities, district councils, as well as all people interested in RTS, who can use our materials (e.g. other NGOs, residents of other cities).
The Initiative for Friendly Transport Łódź Association was the substantial partner of the project. It had an input during the meetings of the team coordinating educational events, shared the knowledge and gave opinions about educational materials.