Mrs Meredith Liddle; A/Prof Marko Sevrovic, Faculty of Transport and Traffic Sciences (FPZ), University of Zagreb and Senior Road Safety Engineer, European Institute of Road Assessment (EIRA) collecting the trophy on behalf of Croatian Roads; and Miquel Nadal, iRAP Board Chairman

The International Road Assessment Programme (iRAP) has proudly announced Croatian Roads Ltd as a Finalist for the iRAP Gary Liddle Memorial Trophy in Prague today, presented to the world’s best performing road authority eliminating high-risk roads.

The new and perpetual iRAP trophy honours the lifelong public-sector and transport contribution of the charity’s former Board Chairman Gary Liddle AO who passed away earlier this year.

Croatian Roads Ltd has been using the globally recognised iRAP Methodology to create safer roads in the country since 2008, in collaboration with the Croatian Automobile Club, Ministry of Interior and University of Zagreb. iRAP Star Rating assessments have helped them understand the level of risk ‘built in’ to their road infrastructure and develop Safer Roads Investment Plans to inform evidence-based safety upgrades which are saving lives and preventing serious injuries every day.

In announcing the Finalists, iRAP CEO Rob McInerney said, “The calibre of nominations this year was very high and the judges have recognised Croatian Roads’ proactive road safety stance that extends beyond assessments to embed iRAP in their day-to-day operations to deliver 3-star or better journeys. Their robust and evidence-based approach has enabled important investment to be secured and deployed to save lives.”

Slavisa Babic of the Croatian Roads said, “We are very proud to receive this international recognition. In 2018, we took the momentous step forward to revolutionize our approach to road design and maintenance informed by our own iRAP assessments. Embracing the principles of ‘forgiving roads and roadsides’ and informed by rigorous road safety audits and inspections, we have championed for safer road infrastructure informed by iRAP ever since.”

iRAP’s Star Rating Methodology provides a simple and objective measure of the level of safety that is ‘built-in’ to the road for vehicle occupants, motorcyclists, bicyclists, and pedestrians.

The Authority is integrating iRAP assessments with routine road maintenance and inspection activities, using Star Rating for Designs (SR4D) to improve the safety of road designs before the implementation of works, and pursuing opportunities to collaborate on innovative EU projects to maximise impact.

Croatian Roads provided integral support for the European Commission’s Connecting Europe Facility Project SLAIN (Saving Lives Assessing and Improving TEN-T Road Network Safety) conducted in the five European countries of Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Italy and Spain from 2019 to 2021. They provided technical and financial support for the project that delivered 8,000 km of risk maps, 4,000 km of Star Ratings and Safer Road Investment Plans, and analysed roads for their readiness for connected and automated vehicles (CAVs).

Croatian Roads has been recognised in the ‘Safety on TEN-T’ project – an exceptional achievement that will see the safety of over 200 km of Croatia’s high-risk roads improved with targeted engineering countermeasures, financed with EU funding of up to 85 per cent of the project value.

The Vodice Bypass is just one example of success where infrastructure improvements, informed by iRAP assessments in combination with other interventions, have achieved a 21.5 per cent reduction in serious road traffic crashes between 2010 and 2019.

Croatian Roads will be an important partner in the delivery of Croatia’s National Road Safety Plan 2021-2030 which sets the target for all new roads and existing roads in the country carrying 75 per cent of traffic to meet a minimum 3-star iRAP Star Rating for all road users by 2030.

The iRAP Gary Liddle Memorial Trophy winner was presented on Thursday 5 October during the iRAP Innovation Workshop, an official side event of the XXVIIth World Road Congress being held from 2-6 October at Prague Congress Centre, Czech Republic.

For more information:

• On Croatian Roads’ road safety program, click here.
• On all the Trophy winners, click here.

– Ends –

Media enquiries

Download a copy of the press release

For iRAP:
Judy Williams, Global Programme and Communications Manager
Mob:     +61 400 782 204
Email:   judy.williams@irap.org

For Croatian Roads:
Slaviša Babić, Head of the Traffic Department
Mob:     +385 98 905 8589
Email:   slavisa.babic@hrvatske-ceste.hr

About Gary Liddle and the Memorial Trophy

Gary Liddle was a deeply respected transport industry leader, volunteer Trustee of the iRAP charity for nine years and Chair of the iRAP Board from 2017-2022. Prior to his passing with MND in 2023, his leadership and wisdom helped grow the charity’s impact to the point where more than 400,000 deaths and injuries had been saved by partners worldwide. Gary served the transport industry for more than 40 years. In that time, as well as supporting iRAP, he occupied senior leadership positions in the Australian road sector, including as Chief Executive of VicRoads, Deputy Secretary of the Department of Transport, Planning and Local Infrastructure (Vic), Chair of ARRB, Chair of Austroads and Chair of iMOVE, Board Member of Roads Australia and governing roles in both PIARC and REAAA. In 2017, Gary was made an Officer in the Order of Australia (AO) for “distinguished service to public administration in the Victorian transport sector through leadership in policy direction, infrastructure development, road safety and regulatory reform.” He was a strong and steadfast leader, generous and supportive mentor and committed advocate for road safety. Given his lifelong contribution to the public-sector and transport, iRAP is honouring Gary’s legacy with the Gary Liddle Memorial Trophy that will be awarded annually.  Nominations are open to any national, state or local road authority in the world that has utilised the iRAP methodology and/or tools to make their roads safer and communities more liveable. Infrastructure safety programs/activities and associated evaluations must have been completed within the last 5 years. The award recognises life-saving impact, leadership in governance and public service, relevance, innovation, sustainability, collaboration and transferability to other jurisdictions.
https://irap.org/irap-gary-liddle-memorial-trophy/

 About Croatian Roads Ltd

Croatian Roads Ltd (Hrvatske ceste d.o.o.) is a Croatian state-owned limited liability company tasked with management, construction and maintenance of state roads in Croatia pursuant to provisions of the Croatian Public Roads Act.
http://www.hrvatske-ceste.hr/

About the International Road Assessment Programme (iRAP)

iRAP is a registered charity with a vision for a world free of high-risk roads, influencing road infrastructure safety in more than 170 countries. iRAP and its partners work with the United Nations, World Health Organisation, governments, development banks, mobility clubs, industry, road safety NGOs and research organisations to provide evidence-based tools, training and support to help them make their roads safe. iRAP’s road safety Star Rating Methodology is free to use and provides a simple and objective measure of the level of safety which is ‘built-in’ to the road for vehicle occupants, motorcyclists, bicyclists and pedestrians. A 1-star road is the least safe and a 5-star road is the safest. iRAP works with partners to: inspect high-risk roads and develop Star Ratings, Risk Maps and Safer Roads Investment Plans; provide training, tools, and support that will build and sustain national, regional, and local capability; and track road safety performance so that funding agencies can assess the life-saving and economic benefits of their investments. iRAP and its partners have Star Rated nearly 1.5 million kilometres of roads and designs, and 1,229 schools, influencing the safety of USD$100 billion of infrastructure investment. Nearly 1.8 million km have been risk mapped and over 63,350 people have been trained globally. iRAP Safety Insights Explorer (https://irap.org/safety-insights-explorer/) sheds a light on the human and economic impact of road crashes, how safe our roads are, and the Business Case for Safer Roads in countries and the world.
www.irap.org