OPTIMISING ROAD LIGHTING TO REDUCE ROAD TRAFFIC CRASHES

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
C.J. Robbins ◽  
S. Fotios ◽  
J. Uttley ◽  
R. Rowe

Pedestrians and motorcyclists are vulnerable road users, being over represented in road traffic collisions (RTCs). One assumed benefit of road lighting is a reduction in RTCs after dark by countering the impairment to the visual detection of hazards that occur after dark. One way to optimise the use of road lighting is to light only those sections of road where light level, and hence visibility, is an important factor. The current study used change in ambient light level on RTCs to investigate those situations where improved vision is likely to have significant impact, and therefore the situations where road lighting is of better cost-benefit effectiveness. For both motorcyclist and pedestrian RTCs there was a significant increase in overall RTC risk in darkness compared to daylight, indicating that there may be an overall benefit of road lighting. While darkness was a particular detriment at junctions for motorcyclists and on high-speed roads for pedestrians, road lighting may not be effective mitigation in either case and therefore alternative ways of increasing conspicuity should be considered.

2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 171
Author(s):  
Aine Kusumawati ◽  
Kardina N.S. Ayuningtyas ◽  
Estiara Ellizar

Speeding is one of the risk factors for road traffic crashes and deaths, especially for vulnerable road users. Research shows that increasing vehicle speed by 1 km/h can increase 4% -5% of fatal crashes. However, several other studies show that crashes are caused more by speed dispersion than by average speed vehicles in the traffic. This study aims to determine the effect of speed limit violations on the rate of a motorcycle crash on the national road in Bandung City. Although the proportion of motorcycles that violates the speed limit is quite high (40%), it turns out the result of this study indicates that the rate of motorcycle crash does not seem to be affected by the proportion of motorcycle in the traffic that violates the speed limit. Crashes involving motorcycles are more prevalent in the highest flow period than in the free flow conditions where the proportion of motorcycle that violates the speed limit is the highest. Mengendara dengan kecepatan tinggi merupakan salah satu faktor risiko penyebab kecelakaan lalu lintas dan kematian akibat kecelakaan lalu lintas, terutama pada kelompok pengguna jalan rentan. Penelitian menunjukkan bahwa peningkatan kecepatan kendaraan sebesar 1 km/jam dapat meningkatkan 4%-5% kecelakaan fatal. Namun beberapa penelitian lainnya menunjukkan bahwa kecelakaan lebih disebabkan oleh adanya variasi kecepatan di dalam arus dibanding kecepatan rata-rata kendaraan di dalam arus. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui pengaruh pelanggaran batas kecepatan terhadap tingkat kecelakaan sepeda motor di jalan nasional Kota Bandung. Walaupun proporsi sepeda motor yang melanggar batas kecepatan cukup tinggi (40%), ternyata hasil penelitian mengindikasikan bahwa tingkat kecelakaan sepeda motor tampaknya tidak dipengaruhi oleh proporsi sepeda motor di dalam arus yang melanggar batas kecepatan. Kecelakaan yang melibatkan sepeda motor justru lebih banyak terjadi pada kondisi arus tertinggi dalam satu hari dibanding pada kondisi arus lengang dimana proporsi sepeda motor yang melanggar batas kecepatan paling banyak.


PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (12) ◽  
pp. e0261182
Author(s):  
Anesh Sukhai ◽  
Rajen Govender ◽  
Ashley van Niekerk

Background Contextual effects from the physical and social environment contribute to inequitable protection for a large proportion of road users, especially in low- and middle-income countries like South Africa where distorted urban planning and socio-spatial disparities from the apartheid era prevail. Objectives This paper examines the differentiated risk of road traffic crashes and injuries to vulnerable road users in South Africa, including pedestrians, females and users of some modes of public transport, in relation to characteristics of the crashes that proxy a range of contextual influences such as rurality and socio-economic deprivation. Methods The study is based on a descriptive analysis of 33 659 fatal crashes that occurred in South Africa over a three-year period from 2016–2018. Measures of simple proportion, population-based fatality rate, “impact factor” and crash severity are compared between disaggregated groups using Chi-Square analysis, with the Cramer’s V statistic used to assess effect size. Results and significance Key findings show a higher pedestrian risk in relation to public transport vehicles and area-level influences such as the nature of roads or extent of urbanity; higher passenger risk in relation to public transport vehicles and rurality; and higher risk for female road users in relation to public transport vehicles. The findings have implications for prioritising a range of deprivation-related structural effects. In addition, we present a “User-System-Context” conceptual framework that allows for a holistic approach to addressing vulnerability in the transport system. The findings provide an important avenue for addressing the persistently large burden of road traffic crashes and injuries in the country.


2011 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 276-282 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Arbon ◽  
Jo Hayes ◽  
Richard Woodman

AbstractIntroduction: This project examined the use of first aid by bystanders at road traffic crashes (RTC) and was undertaken in the context of increasing average ambulance response times to RTC throughout Australia and the potential impact of early first aid intervention on the mortality and morbidity associated with RTC. The aim of this project was to acquire knowledge about the prevalence of first aid training; the incidence of being a bystander and of providing first aid; the range of first aid skills being utilized; the motivation to intervene; and, the perceived impact of first aid training.Methods: An Internet-based survey was distributed to a potential population of 12,500 road users and a total of 773 responded. Descriptive and comparative statistical analysis of quantitative data and thematic analysis of qualitative data were completed.Results: Seventy-seven percent (77%) of participants had first aid training at some stage in their lives; 28% held a current first aid certificate; 11% had provided first aid at RTC; 75.3% who had provided first aid were travelling in a vehicle. Having first aid training increased the likelihood of intervention and of owning a first aid kit or pocket mask.Conclusions: First aid training, even if it is not current, is an enabler for providing first aid at RTCs. The first aid skills most commonly used were changing posture, opening an airway, and providing comfort and reassurance. Key concerns for first aiders included a feeling of a lack of follow-up, and lack of an opportunity to debrief. Strategies to increase first aid training, to improve information and support, and to increase the knowledge of first aider’s are discussed.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 4222
Author(s):  
Uchenna Nnabuihe Uhegbu ◽  
Miles R. Tight

The continuous increases in the numbers of road traffic crashes (RTC) over the years, especially in developing countries, have been a source of worry. The majority of the RTC are attributed to road user behaviours exhibited by the drivers. This study sets out to investigate the road user attitudes and behaviours in Abuja, Nigeria. A total of 1526 questionnaires were distributed, of which 321 questionnaires were completed and returned. The questionnaires tried to understand four major road user behaviours, namely use of seatbelts, drink driving, use of mobile phone while driving, and use of child restraints. The results after analysing the questionnaires showed that the majority of the road users in Abuja showed high non-compliance with the use of seatbelts, either when driving or when being driven. About 64% of the respondents admitted to not using seatbelts. Results from the cross-tabulation process showed that the high non-compliance to seatbelt usage was statistically associated with young, single road users. Around one-third of Abuja road users admitted to drink driving. Road users who were married engaged in more frequent drink driving than road users who were single, and the association was statistically significant. A high percentage of Abuja road users admitted to using mobile phones while driving and 55.8% of the total respondents admitted to not using child restraints while driving. A lack of child restraints was statistically associated more with male road users than female road users. It is recommended that stricter enforcement of road safety laws should be undertaken and that the government should provide road safety agents with the right equipment (e.g., speed guns, breathalyzers) that would aid road safety agents to perform their duties effectively in order to curb the excessive bad road user behaviours in Abuja.


2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Dagenais ◽  
Michelle Proulx ◽  
Esther Mc Sween-Cadieux ◽  
Aude Nikiema ◽  
Emmanuel Bonnet ◽  
...  

AbstractIn this commentary, we present a follow-up of two articles published in 2017 and 2018 about road traffic crashes, which is an important public health issue in Africa and Burkina Faso. The first article reported on a research project, conducted in partnership with local actors involved in road safety, carried out in Ouagadougou in 2015. Its aim was to test the effectiveness, acceptability, and capacity of a surveillance system to assess the number of road traffic crashes and their consequences on the health of crash victims. Several knowledge translation activities were carried out to maximize its impact and were reported in the 2018 article published in HRPS: monthly reports presenting the research data, large-format printed maps distributed to the city’s police stations, and a deliberative workshop held at the end of the research project. The present commentary presents our efforts to deepen our understanding of the impacts of the knowledge translation strategy, based on follow-up interviews, 18 months after the workshop, with the heads of the road traffic crash units in Ouagadougou police stations (n = 5). Several benefits were reported by respondents. Their involvement in the process prompted them to broaden their knowledge of other ways of dealing with the issue of road crashes. This led them, sometimes with their colleagues, to intervene differently: more rapid response at collision sites, increased surveillance of dangerous intersections, user awareness-raising on the importance of the highway code, etc. However, sustaining these actions over the longer term has proven difficult. Several lessons were derived from this experience, regarding the importance of producing useful and locally applicable research data, of ensuring the acceptability of the technologies used for data collection, of using collaborative approaches in research and knowledge translation, of ensuring the visibility of actions undertaken by actors in the field, and of involving decision-makers in the research process to maximize its impacts.


2014 ◽  
Vol 66 ◽  
pp. 36-42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ramazan Mirzaei ◽  
Nima Hafezi-Nejad ◽  
Mohammad Sadegh Sabagh ◽  
Alireza Ansari Moghaddam ◽  
Vahid Eslami ◽  
...  

2019 ◽  

In the three years since the last road safety report was issued, the number of road traffic deaths has continued to increase throughout the Americas, reaching 154,997 deaths in 2016 (latest year of available data). However, the death rate from road traffic crashes has remained stable (15.6 per 100,000 population in 2016 as compared to 15.9 per 100,000 population in 2013). Data presented in this report show that aspects of road safety management, legislation, and post-crash care have improved in some countries. However, the improvements have been modest and it is clear that the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target 3.6, to halve road traffic deaths by 2020, will not be achieved... Since 2014, more countries in the Region have implemented road safety legislation. Two additional countries, the Dominican Republic and Uruguay, established laws on drink-driving based on best practice, bringing the total to eight countries. Ecuador implemented legislation on helmet use (resulting in a total of seven countries), Dominican Republic implemented legislation on seat-belts (19 countries in total), while Chile implemented child restraint laws (two countries in total). However, no new speed laws have been enacted in the Region. Overall, four countries (Chile, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, and Uruguay) have amended their laws regarding one or more road safety risk factors to bring them in line with best practice. Despite these legislative developments, enforcement remains a major challenge in most countries...


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