OLA delivers improved safety for motorcycle and moped riders in Sweden

Introduction

Motorcycles and mopeds are increasingly popular in Sweden having doubled over the past decade. Despite this increasing popularity this mode of transportation has a major downside – the danger riders are subjected to in the event of an accident.

The Swedish Parliament adopted “Vision Zero” in 1997. This was a political commitment for no one is to be killed or seriously injured within the Swedish road system in the long term. This vision also involved a major change in thinking – not to focus on the guilt of individuals but to focus on the overall responsibility of all stakeholders who can influence road safety.

This is where OLA comes in. OLA stands for “Objective data, List of solutions, Adressed action plans”. OLA is the ‘invention’ of Mr. Claes Tingvall, Director of Traffic Safety, at Swedish Transport Administration whose son’s name is Ola.

OLA implies shared responsibility of all stakeholders to improve outcomes instead of simply attempting to shift blame and risk between each other.