UNITED NATIONS ROAD SAFETY INSTRUMENTS
The main United Nations instruments pertaining to road safety are as follows:
UNECE manages a total of 58 transport-related international legal instruments, which are negotiated
by governments and become legally binding for countries that accede to them. These road safety legal
International Conventions and Agreements
instruments cover:
The Convention on Road Traffic, of 19 September 1949, and the Convention on Road Traffic,
• Traffic rules
• Road signs and signals
• Construction and technical inspection of vehicles
• Road infrastructure
• Driving times and rest periods for professional drivers
• Transport of dangerous goods by road
of 8 November 1968, with their latest amendments, set up commonly agreed rules on all factors
influencing international road traffic and its safety, including the driver and the vehicle, and is the
reference for many national road traffic codes all over the world. Whilst there is no explicit mention
of drinking and driving in either the 1949 or 1968 Conventions on Road Traffic, there is an overarching
and implicit duty of care of drivers towards pedestrians and other road users. Drivers must be
in a fit state to drive and control a vehicle safely.
These road safety legal instruments also cover related social legislation for professional drivers and
transport operators, regulatory frameworks for liability and insurance, as well as economic regulations
The 1968 Convention on Road Signs and Signals sets up more than 200 commonly agreed reference road
governing international road transport. All of the UNECE conventions are administered by Working
signs and signals, prescribes common norms for traffic light
Parties and/or Administrative Committees in charge of updating and amending these instruments.
signals and uniform conditions for road markings. Some of the
key provisions under the convention are the three categories
The UNECE secretariat incorporates a governance structure that offers a multi-dimensional approach
in effectively assisting governments to accede to United Nations road safety legal instruments, as well
as aiding in their implementation.
WP.1, the main coordinating body in the area of road safety, works in conjunction with other working
parties to offer a platform that enables cooperation and the exchange of information and good practices
of road signs: danger warning, regulatory and informative.
The European Agreement concerning the Work of Crews of
Vehicles engaged in International Road Transport (AETR), of 1
July 1970, provides provisions to regulate the work and rest
among governments.
periods of professional drivers of trucks, buses and coaches.
The Working Party on the Transport of Dangerous Goods (WP.15) addresses all issues regarding inland
The European Agreement concerning the International
transport of dangerous goods, and more particularly those concerning road transport.
Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road (ADR), has 48