Understanding organisations’ responsibilities and readiness for occupational road safety: Implications for saving lives beyond 2025

Most organisations generate travel and transport and thus influence traffic safety. Nevertheless, their roles and responsibilities for occupational road safety remain poorly understood. This study examines organisational readiness for occupational road safety with a particular focus on the relationship between organisations’ perceptions of traffic safety and the implementation of traffic safety measures. The study is based on a survey of organisational representatives in 109 companies in Sweden in 2025. The survey consists of two questionnaires capturing organisational commitment and reported measures to improve traffic safety in organisations’ roles as employers and transport buyers. An employer questionnaire focuses on traffic safety requirements for employees’ work-related travel and organisational vehicle fleets, while a transport procurement questionnaire captures the requirements on transport procurement. Organisational readiness for occupational road safety is analysed using Organisational Readiness for Implementing Change (ORIC), including perceived capacity to influence traffic safety, views on responsibility, and the integration of traffic safety into occupational health and safety (OHS) or sustainability practices. The results show that many organisations have policies for work-related travel and set traffic safety requirements for their vehicles, while such requirements in transport procurement remain limited. Regression analyses indicate that organisations with higher readiness are more likely to set traffic safety requirements, particularly regarding work-related travel. The findings highlight the need to strengthen organisations’ awareness of their roles and responsibilities, clarify expectations for organisations from authorities, and further integrate traffic safety into organisational management systems to reduce road traffic fatalities and injuries, in line with the global road safety agenda, often framed as “saving lives beyond 2025”.