This piece originally appeared in the Regulatory Review.
Transportation safety is a critical topic of policy research. As a function of population growth and miles traveled, U.S. transportation safety demonstrates a significant reduction in the number of fatalities during the last 30 years. This progress likely reflects “safety culture,” or the set of beliefs, practices, norms, and rules which mediate transportation.
For example, air travel deaths have plummeted by two-thirds, even though total miles traveled have increased by 42 percent over the last 30 years. Today, the few aviation-related deaths that occur each year happen on private, not scheduled commercial, flights.
Some scholars attribute the gains in air safety to the confidential, voluntary, and non-punitive Aviation Safety Reporting System, although the relationship between reporting and reduced accidents is unclear. But research suggests more clearly that these gains from learned practices as a psychological or social concept can improve safety, particularly in workplaces facilitated by manager commitment and employee involvement.
Continue reading in the Regulatory Review.
