Traffic Safety

Approaches
 Among the basic references in roadway safety,
road safety strategies may be separated into
5 categories:

1. Exposure control,
2. Accident prevention & risk control,
3. Behaviour modification,
4. Injury control,
5. Post-injury management.
1. Exposure control
 “Involves strategies
to reduce
the number of vehicle-km of travel
by motorists.
 Actions to implement
Exposure Control Strategy?
1. Reduce transport demand &
amount of road traffic

Urban & transport policies

(traffic restraint)

Urban renewal
(increased density, short distances)

Telecommunications
(tele-working, tele-shopping)
 Mobility management
(car pools)

Logistics
(efficient use of transport fleets)
 2. Promote safe, comfortable
walking & bicycling

Area wide pedestrian & bicycle networks

3. Provide & promote public transport

Land use integrated with public transport.

Efficient service
(bus lanes, LRT, MRT, fare systems)
 Problems generally
encountered to implement
exposure strategies??
 Must take place over a long period.

Require systematic
physical changes to urban infrastructure &
behavioural changes in the travelling public.

Require large investments

(providing good public transportation alternatives
& changing urban land use structure)
2. Accident Prevention
&
Accident Risk Control
 i. Accident Prevention?
Actions that reduce number of accidents that
occur for a given demand level

ii. Accident Risk Control?

Incorporates the above, but also includes
measures that reduce the severity of an accident
when it occurs
i. Accident Prevention
 • Involves a number of policy measures:

Driver, rider & pedestrian training

Provision of better roadway designs & control

devices that encourage good driving practices &
minimise the occurrence of driver error (safe system
approach).
 ii. Accident Risk Control
(or Reduction of Severity)
• Involves the design & protection of
roadside & median environments

Proper guardrail
Impact-attenuating devices (crash-cushion)
Actions to implement
Accident Prevention &
Risk Control Strategy?
 i. Homogenisation of traffic flow

Standards for geometric design,

Traffic management, pedestrian zones, motor

vehicles restrictions,

Traffic calming.
ii. Separation between traffic streams

Grade separation
(multi-level interchanges)

At-grade separation
(traffic signals, roundabouts)

Channelisation
(medians, road markings)
iii. Traffic control & Road management

Travel time distribution

(staggered hours)

Traffic control
(information, warning, variable signs)

Road maintenance & inspection

3. Behaviour Modification
 Affecting mode choice
is a major behaviour modification action
that is difficult to
successfully achieved
Large subsidies to keep cost of public transport
reasonable, coupled with high parking fee & other
fees associated with driving.
 Requires very high-std & convenient
public transport alternatives &
implementing policies that make public transport
a much more attractive alternative
than driving for work & other types of trips.
Another Strategy?
 Enforcement
Can be very effective, but is also expensive

Speed limits will be more obeyed if enforcement

is strict & fines are expensive.
 In recent years…

a) Automated Systems for Ticketing drivers

who Violate Red Lights

Quite popular
b) Automated Speed Enforcement

Possible with current technologies

Issues involved in automated enforcement
are more legal than technical at present.
 License plate recorded but
prove of who is driving the vehicle?

 Can that be used to deduct “points” ?

4. Injury Control
 Focus on crash survivability
of occupants in a vehicular accident
(secondary safety)

This is primarily affected by better vehicle design.

New Car Assessment Program (NCAP)

Vehicle design features that would
improve crash survivability?
Seat belts & laws requiring their use (front & rear).

Child-restraint seats & laws requiring their use.

Anti-burst door locks.

Energy-absorbing steering posts & crumple zones.

 Side door beams.

Air bags.

Head rests.

Shatterproof glass.

Forgiving interior fittings.

Other Actions to implement
Injury Control Strategy?
i. Reduce consequences, preventive
measures
Emergency zones without obstacles.

Breakaway posts.

Installation of median & lateral barriers.

ii. Reduce consequences, efficient rescue
service
Establishment of rescue service.

Emergency operation
(traffic regulations)
iii. Reinstalling traffic apparatus

Road repair & inspection.

5. Post-Injury Management
 Traffic fatalities
tend to occur during
3 critical time
 i. During the accident occurrence,
or within minutes of it.

Death usually related to head or heart trauma or

extreme loss of blood.
ii. Within 1-3 hours of accident occurrence.

Death usually related to head or heart trauma or

extreme loss of blood.
 iii. Within 30 days of admission
to the hospital.

Death usually results from cessation of brain

activity, organ failure, or infection.
Death time following an accident?
I. Death on the spot : 71.5% (50%)

II. Death within 3 hrs of injury : 25.3% (35%)

III. Death within 30 days of admission : 3.2% (15%)

 Little can be done for
death ocurring during the accidents
even in developed countries
with high-quality medical care systems.
Biggest opportunity for improvement is in
the 2nd category.
 Speedy notification of emergency services

 Fast dispatch of appropriate equipment to the site

 Well-trained emergency medical technicians

attending to immediate medical needs of victims

 Well-staffed & equipped trauma centres at

hospitals
“Decade of Action
for Road Safety
2011-2020”
 Pillars of the Plan

Road safety Safer Safer Safer road

management Post –crash
roads and vehicles users response
mobility
 Road safety management
Strengthen institutional capacity
Put in practice United Nations road safety
conventions
Establish lead agency
Develop a national road safety strategy
Set realistic and long-term targets
Develop data systems

Road safety
Safer Safer Safer road Post –crash
management
roads vehicles users response
and
mobility
 Safer roads and mobility
Improve safety-conscious planning, design, construction
and operation of roads
Assess regularly safety of roads
Explore various forms of transport and safe infrastructure

Road safety
Safer Safer Safer road Post –crash
management
roads vehicles users response
and
mobility
 Safer vehicles
Harmonize global standards
Implement new car assessment programs
Equip all new cars with minimum safety features
Promote use of crash avoidance technologies
Encourage managers of fleets to purchase, operate and
maintain safe vehicles

Road safety
Safer Safer Safer road Post –crash
management
roads vehicles users response
and
mobility
 Safer road users
Adopt model road safety legislations
Sustain or increase enforcement
Promote public awareness of risk factors
Call for activities to reduce work-related road traffic injuries
Establish graduated driver licensing programs for novice drivers

Road safety
Safer Safer Safer road Post –crash
management
roads vehicles users response
and
mobility
 Post-crash response
Develop pre-hospital care systems
Put in place single nationwide emergency telephone number
Provide early rehabilitation and support to injured patients
and those bereaved by road traffic crashes
Establish insurance schemes
Investigate crashes and provide legal response

Road safety
Safer Safer Safer road Post–crash
management
roads vehicles users response
and
mobility
End