The European Road Safety Charter of the European Commission recently published an article titled “Road infrastructure: A foundation for safer roads“, highlighting the critical role of road infrastructure in achieving safer roads. Road design can either support safe behavior or create danger. Many roads encourage high speeds without adequate protection, increasing crash severity. Undivided roads raise head‑on collision risks, unsafe roadsides worsen run‑off crashes, and missing footpaths or crossings leave vulnerable users exposed. To create self-explaining and forgiving roads, six core design principles guide safer infrastructure: provide orientation by making the road environment easy to read and anticipate; attract attention through clear design and signs highlighting hazards; promote standardization with consistent layouts that help users recognize situations; support the detection of potential conflicts through good visibility and guidance at critical points; improve clarity with visible and easy to interpret signs and markings and provide passive safety through forgiving roadsides and designs that reduce injury severity.