Caribbean Road Safety: Data and Institution Management

Sharon Inglefield serves as President of Arrive Alive, Trinidad and Tobago's leading road safety NGO, which she joined in 2009 following the tragic loss of her 25-year-old son Jonathan in a traffic collision at a signalized intersection. Her personal loss transformed into a powerful mission to create positive change on Trinidad and Tobago's roads, leading to significant achievements including a 49% reduction in fatalities between 2011-2018. As President of Arrive Alive, she champions comprehensive road safety initiatives, including school education programs reaching three schools weekly, infrastructure improvement advocacy, and community awareness campaigns. Her expertise is enhanced through participation in international workshops with the United Nations World Health Organization, the Global Alliance of NGOs of Road Safety, and the International Road Federation. Under her leadership, Arrive Alive provides grief counseling to affected families, advocates for improved road infrastructure, and works closely with law enforcement to enhance road safety measures. Her recent efforts include addressing an 8% increase in road fatalities in 2024 through campaigns for better road signage, lighting, and infrastructure improvements, while also organizing events like the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims to honor lives lost and promote road safety awareness.

Defny Geldorp serves as Head of the Traffic and Transport section at the General Bureau of Statistics (GBS) of Suriname, where she leads efforts in collecting, analyzing, and managing transportation data to inform policy decisions. In her role at GBS, she oversees the compilation of traffic and transport statistics, which are crucial for understanding mobility patterns, safety trends, and infrastructure needs in Suriname. Her work involves analyzing transportation data to support evidence-based policymaking and improve road safety outcomes. As a 36-year-old mother, she brings both professional expertise and personal commitment to her advocacy for traffic safety. Her position at GBS allows her to bridge the gap between data collection and practical policy implementation, working to enhance transportation systems and safety measures through statistical analysis. Her professional motto emphasizes the importance of safety and caution in traffic, reflecting her dedication to using data analytics to promote safer transportation solutions in Suriname.

Neil Pedersen served as Executive Director of the Transportation Research Board (TRB) from 2015 to 2022, where he provided strategic leadership for TRB's technical activities, including its annual meeting with 14,000 attendees, 177 standing technical committees, conferences, workshops, and research programs. Before leading TRB, he spent 29 years at the Maryland Department of Transportation, with eight years as State Highway Administrator and Governor's Highway Safety Representative. His academic foundation includes bachelor's degrees in Civil Engineering and Urban Studies from Bucknell University and a master's degree in Civil Engineering from Northwestern University. His early career began as a transportation planning consultant at R.H. Pratt Associates and JHK Associates. Throughout his career, Pedersen has been recognized with numerous honors including the George S. Bartlett Award, the Road Gang's Lester P. Lamm Award, and AASHTO's Intermodal Award. Prior to becoming Executive Director, he served TRB as a volunteer for over 30 years in various leadership roles, including Chair of the TRB Executive Committee and the Technical Activities Council. Under his leadership at TRB, he championed diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives while expanding the organization's impact through research, policy studies, and international partnerships.

Claudia Franchesca de los Santos is a distinguished civil engineer and public administrator with over 25 years of experience in transportation and infrastructure development in the Dominican Republic. Her career encompasses significant leadership roles, including serving as Executive Director of the National Institute of Traffic and Land Transportation (INTRANT) and two terms as Vice-Minister of State at the Ministry of Public Works and Communications (1996-2000 and 2004-2017). She holds a Civil Engineering degree and a postgraduate degree in Construction Administration from the Technological Institute of Santo Domingo (INTEC). Her expertise spans road infrastructure development, transportation systems, and civil construction project management. She has also served as President of ITS Iberoamerica (Intelligent Transportation Systems) and played a crucial role in modernizing the Dominican Republic's transit system. Throughout her career, she has demonstrated exceptional capability in managing state projects, particularly in transportation infrastructure development and road safety initiatives. Her leadership at INTRANT was marked by significant reforms in the country's transportation sector, implementing modern transit solutions and safety measures.

Marisela Ponce de León Valdés currently serves as SSATP's Road Safety Pillar Lead and Transport Specialist at the Global Road Safety Facility (GRSF) of the World Bank Group, where she is the focal point for East Asia Pacific under the Bloomberg Initiative for Global Road Safety (BIGRS). Her academic credentials include a Master's in Public Health from the University of Liverpool and a Bachelor's in International Relations from the Tecnológico de Monterrey. Her extensive career in road safety and public health includes significant roles at major international organizations, serving as a Road Safety and Injury Prevention Consultant for the World Health Organization's Western Pacific Regional Office in the Philippines and the Pan American Health Organization's Mexico Country Office. She previously worked as National Youth Coordinator and in the International Relations Department at Mexico's Technical Secretariat of the National Council for Accident Prevention (STCONAPRA). Her expertise spans road safety policy, speed management, and accident prevention, regularly contributing to global initiatives and policy discussions through publications and speaking engagements. As a transport specialist, she has been instrumental in addressing critical road safety challenges, particularly focusing on speed management and its impact on road safety outcomes.