EASST forms Regional Safe Routes to School Technical Forum
EASST is pleased to announce the formation of the Regional Safe Routes to School Technical Forum.
Following the launch of the EASST Coalition for Safe Routes to School in June 2026, the creation of the Technical Forum represents an important milestone in the implementation of our multi-year initiative to advance safe journeys to and from schools across Eastern Europe and Central Asia.
The Forum will act as a high-level strategic and advisory body to maximise the Coalition’s impact across policy and practice. It includes representatives from the Asian Development Bank, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, European Investment Bank, iRAP, International Road Federation, Global Road Safety Partnership, UNECE, and FIA Foundation. Members will meet regularly with EASST partners, national stakeholders and road safety practitioners from across the region to provide strategic insight, advise on the investment environment, policy and planning processes, and highlight opportunities for investment in safe routes to school.
By bringing together international financial institutions and civil society, our aim is to coordinate regional action on safe routes to school and advocate for the upstreaming of school safety principles as an infrastructure and investment priority. The Forum will place emphasis on the value of Safe System principles and work to establish a network of regional champions, laying a strong foundation for the continuation of the Coalition’s work beyond the project’s lifespan.
About the EASST Coalition for Safe Routes to School
The EASST Coalition for Safe Routes to School is a regional initiative supported by the FIA Foundation, working to make the journeys children take to and from school safer across Eastern Europe and Central Asia.
Building on five years of success (2021-2026), including the delivery of more than 1,000 reduced-speed school zones and significant policy change across a number of countries, this new phase aims to go further by strengthening links between school safety advocacy and the large-scale road and transport investments made by multilateral development banks and other international financial institutions (IFIs).
The initiative works across two areas:
- At a policy level, EASST aims to engage with IFIs to explore how child road safety principles can be more systematically reflected in major road investment projects, drawing on existing Bank protocols, tools and assessments to help maximise the safety value of road investments.
- At a project level, EASST will work with national partners to help strengthen the enabling environment needed for safe school zone measures to be included in how roads are designed, funded and delivered — supporting governments in translating existing commitments into safer streets by addressing practical barriers around standards, procurement and local delivery capacity.
To ensure the work is locally owned and sustainable, the initiative operates through a network of CSO partners and national focal points, supported by the regional Technical Forum that provides strategic guidance and supports policy change across the region.