Safer roads to school in Mexico City

More than a thousand pedestrians are killed by cars every year in Mexico City. It is the leading cause of death among children aged between 1 and 5. Data exists on where and when accidents are most likely to happen, but it isn’t available to be seen nor used.

The project will make the latest data available on a map which also shows school zones, allowing parents to see where extra care is needed on their children’s route to school – and giving city authorities the information they need to increase children’s safety by considering changes to the design of the most dangerous crossings. This project will also provide tools for parents to evaluate and improve school zones in order to save children’s lives

Update, February 2018: Following some delays caused by the September 2017 earthquake, the map is now live on the project’s website and has been widely covered in local media, drawing public attention to accident hotspots and the reasons for them – notably excessive speed, congestion, and lack or poor quality of road-crossing infrastructure. You can read a detailed report on the findings here. The project is currently organising meetings with public sector and civil society stakeholders to discuss potential solutions to the problems made visible by the data mapping.