Fabian is Senior Manager Road Safety for the NZ Transport Agency. In this role, Fabian is responsible for leading and influencing a step change in New Zealand’s road safety performance. This includes driving an increased understanding and implementation of the Safe System approach and establishing a clear strategic direction for the Agency’s road safety function. In previous roles, Fabian has helped lead and shape new national road safety strategy and policy development, implementation of national road safety programmes and research on new initiatives to improve road safety performance in New Zealand. Fabian has international experience in developing and implementing Safe System strategic programmes, particularly in the roads and roadsides area. Fabian previously worked as Road Safety Advisor at the Public Works Authority in Qatar, working with key government agencies to develop Qatar’s National Road Safety Strategy and providing advice on the implementation and monitoring of key road safety initiatives. Fabian has previously worked in New Zealand as the National Traffic & Safety Manager at the NZ Transport Agency. He has also worked in various road safety and forensic crash investigation roles at companies including the Australian Road Research Board (ARRB) and the UK Transport Research Laboratory (TRL). Fabian has written numerous published technical papers and presented internationally on road safety and forensic crash investigation and is an experienced practitioner on the Safe System approach to road safety.

Bhagwant Persaud, a professor of Civil Engineering at Ryerson University, has become well recognized, in Canada, the United States, and around the world, as an expert in the area of statistical methods in highway safety analysis. He is particularly well known for his work in modeling the relationship between safety and highway characteristics, and in the development and application of these models in Bayesian methods for road network screening and conducting before-after safety evaluation studies. This background led to his selection to write NCHRP Synthesis 295: “Statistical Methods in Highway Safety Analysis”, a widely read document that provides factual knowledge on the state of research and practice in safety analysis tools. Dr. Persaud has been, and is currently involved in several safety related research projects for the Transportation Research Board (TRB), the US Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Transport Canada, the Transportation Association of Canada, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), as well as several DOTs and municipalities. He has authored or co-authored a substantial number of conference and peer-reviewed papers, three of which won awards for the Transportation Research Board’s Annual Meeting outstanding paper in the field of operation, safety and maintenance of transportation facilities. Dr. Persaud’s expertise in highway safety area is supported by, and has led to TRB committee appointments as a member of ABJ80 (“Statistical Methods”), and as co-chair, and now Emeritus Member of ANB20 (“Safety Data, Analysis and Evaluation”). He was also a member of a TRB Task Force (ANB25T): Development of a Highway Safety Manual and has been involved in research projects for several chapters of this Manual. He is a member of the Transportation Association of Canada’s Standing Committee on Road Safety.