Benchmarking road traffic safety across OECD countries: a distance function approach

Abstract

This study combines an economic production framework with a latent risk theory framework to examine improvements in road safety performance of thirteen Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries for the period 1975–2004. We find that, on average, total factor productivity in road safety increased by 2 per cent per annum over the past 30 years. We also find that technological progress has been the main contributor to improvements in road safety. Indicators of economic activity, including the employment rate and CO2 emissions per capita as well as population density, are positively associated with improvements in traffic safety.