Mrs Meredith Liddle; Julio Urzua, iRAP Strategic Projects Director, collecting the trophy on behalf of DNIT; and Miquel Nadal, iRAP Board Chairman
The International Road Assessment Programme (iRAP) has proudly announced Brazil’s National Department of Transport Infrastructure (DNIT) as the Winner of the iRAP Gary Liddle Memorial Trophy in Prague today, presented to the world’s best performing road authority eliminating high-risk roads.
Presented for the first time at the XXVIIth World Road Congress, the 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.
DNIT’s BrazilRAP Project expects to prevent more than 150,000 serious injuries and fatalities over a 20-year period with an economic benefit of BRL 45 billion.
In just 20 months, DNIT supported by local partners and iRAP, Star Rated the country’s extensive 57,000 km network, providing essential data to identify high-risk road segments and develop Safer Roads Investment Plans for each State that prioritised cost-effective engineering countermeasures to improve road safety.
With a planned investment of BRL 18 billion and in line with the goals of the UN Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021-2030, the project aims to halve the number of fatalities and serious injuries on the network and achieve international safety standards for more than 75% of travel on existing roads to be rated 3-star or better for all road users by 2030.
In presenting the award, iRAP CEO Rob McInerney said, “The calibre of nominations was very high, with DNIT a standout for its policy commitment, scale of assessments and mobilised public and private-sector investment to save lives and prevent serious injuries. Its innovation in reporting and integration with agency activities is world-leading,” he said.
DNIT Director Luiz Guilherme de Mello said, “We are very proud to receive this international recognition. DNIT launched the BrazilRAP project in 2021 making a strategic decision to place the iRAP Methodology at the heart of our work to improve road safety. It has provided the evidence-base and inspiration for collaborative efforts to scale up capacity, investment and transform safety across our network.”
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.
Through innovative data analysis that shares iRAP Star Rating results alongside crash data, DNIT departments in road planning, engineering, budget and management, as well as all federal and state road safety partners, can openly visualize the potential of work planned and results achieved. This is contributing to synergy in decision making and a strategic approach to road safety improvement.
Going beyond isolated improvements, the project has effectively tapped into existing funding to activate immediate life-saving road upgrades and inspired long-term partnerships with public and private investors.
The judging panel noted DNIT’s example as a great testimony to others that “a quick and large-scale step-change in performance-based management of road infrastructure investment for road safety is absolutely possible”.
The iRAP Gary Liddle Memorial Trophy was presented to DNIT, along with three other finalists – Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads (TMR), Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) and Croatian Roads Ltd during the iRAP Innovation Workshop, an official side event of the World Road Congress, held from 5-6 October at the Prague Congress Centre, Czech Republic.
For more information on DNIT’s BrazilRAP road safety program:
– Ends –
Media enquiries:
Download the press release here
Download the press release in Portuguese here
For iRAP:
Judy Williams, Global Programme and Communications Manager
Mob: +61 400 782 204
Email: judy.williams@irap.org
For DNIT:
Luiz Guilherme de Mello, Director
Mob: +55 619 9415 7131
Email: luiz.mello@dnit.gov.br
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 the National Department of Transport Infrastructure (DNIT)
Brazil’s national transport infrastructure department, DNIT, is a federal agency attached to the Ministry of Transport, and is responsible for implementing the infrastructure policy related to the Federal Roadways System, managing its operation, maintenance, refurbishment or replacement, and expansion through the construction of new roads and terminals. Founded in 2001 and based in Brasilia, the DNIT manages Brazil’s waterways, roadways, and railways, as well as transfer and intermodal facilities, river and lake ports.
https://www.gov.br/dnit/pt-br
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. The 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
English 
Português do Brasil 
Français 
Tiếng Việt 
Русский 
Español de Colombia 
Nederlands 
