What is the impact of road safety on the design and management of road networks?

Abstract pass transport is the closely common type of transportation worldwide, which inevitably means that affair accidents, and resulting casualties, be a regular feature. Further, the even out of cars in recent years, which combine high-speed engines with poor path performance, has a direct correlation with the continuerence of accidents. Consequentially, itinerary in effect(p)ty has become a common interest within all countries throughout the world. In my opinion, lane caoutchouc can be improved by incorporating relevant geometric, climatic and physical considerations in the spirit of highways. In addition, the cover of an aw arness program in education and advertising plays a pregnant role in strengthening street natural rubber and reducing accidents. On the basis of the foregoing, when one is mental synthesis a safe itinerary, all(prenominal) factor out of safety should be taken into consideration and at every stage of the process, including intent.Th e of import objective of this announce is to show the impact of courseway safety considerations in the end of routeways and the forethought of the road lucre, and how the aim of decreasing road job accidents and casualties influences geometric conception, traffic design and structural design in road construction. In particular, geometric design and traffic design ar greatly influenced by road safety standards, as evidenced in the geometric design of tops, junctions, and unglamorous and wheelwright highways. By relying on a specific typeface study, this paper give also check roundabout design and its interrelation with road safety for instance, whilst roundabouts are likely safer than convergences beca intention they encourage a diminution in fomites speed and encounter points, it has been embed that roundabouts with signalization are safer for both cyclists and pedestrians. For these reasons, it is elucidate that the improvement of road safety requires the inc lusion of safety in road design and management procedures.IntroductionThe road internet is a systematic structure, which is constructed on invariable criteria for the purpose of road transportation and designed with certain considerations (such as traffic, climate condition and the environment) in mind. It is used by the majority of people worldwide, which is unsurprising considering the passel of traffic accidents and road link up deaths and injuries. Indeed in recent times, this is often seen as a global phenomenon, with the keep down of road related deaths ranging from between 0.75 and 0.8 million annually1. Unfortunately, it also appears that this snatch is increasingly rising indeed, a 2008 matter of the World Health Organisation (World health statistics) estimated that the death rate from traffic accidents globally is 2.2%, and that cod to the manufacture of car engines capable of higher speeds and the development of the economy in developing countries, it is anticipat ed that this examine will dramatically increase to about 3.6% by 20302. Likewise, road traffic accident costs are expected to increase.There are three main factors which contribute to road traffic accidents road and plan deficiencies road user errors (human factors) and fomite defects3. Indeed, a UK study from the 1970s butt ond that the human factor plays an unfavorable role in 95% of accidents, whilst 28% and 8% of accidents are at least part caused by environmental and vehicle shortcomings4. For these reasons, it is non logical to focus solely on one whizz factor. It is surface that the fact that road user errors feature in the majority of accidents proves that the human factor is the commandment cause of traffic accidents however, if the construction of roads was geometrically improved, this may not be the case. Indeed, according to Restructuring road institutions, finance and management engineering5, engineering is one of four factors that influence road safety (along w ith enforcement, education, and climate). By concentrate on the impact of the engineering factor on road safety improvement, the objective of this report isTo demonstrate and define the concept of road safety. To explain the incorporation of safety features in road design and management.This report consists of 6 parts methodology an explanation of road safety, road design, and road management the impact of road safety factors on the geometric design and management of roads a presentation of a case study on road intersections, cyclists and pedestrian safety at roundabouts a talk aboution and finally, a culmination2. MethodologyTo demonstrate the effect of the road safety considerations on road design and management, this paper will investigate road intersections through a case study linked to geometric design, and then discuss the safety of cyclists and pedestrians in relation to roundabouts. See Figure 1.3. pass safetyAccording to Oxford Wordpower Dictionary1, safety is be as t he state of being safe not being put on the line of exposureous or in danger, whilst road safety is defined as the prevention of road accidents. The purpose of roads is to provide facilities for safe travel and transport, and improved road safety can be achieved in the design and management of road management by incorporating safety orientated design criteria, design values and interventions2. Such an overture could not only fly the coop to a decrease in road related deaths and accidents, but it could also leave roads much accessible. Indeed, as outlined in the DTMRQ manual3, such an outcome can be achieved with the application of certain factorsImproving road network safety using a risk management approach Designing for safer travel for all road users Providing safer access to the road system for cyclists and pedestrians Ensuring work site safety and Co-ordinating with other government agencies in partnership.As stated above, road users errors is the main factor which contri butes to road accidents. However, it has been discover that the enhancement of engineering design and management can influence drivers behavior positively and reduce the number of such errors4. It should be noted that no road is absolutely safe and that the safety of a road is often measured on the volume of accidents on it. For that reason, it is logical to indicate that the construction of a road involves the use of a nominal safety level54. Road designAccording to Oxford Wordpower Dictionary6, design is defined as to plan and machinate a drawing of how something will be made. The three aspects of design that must(prenominal) be considered in the construction of roads are geometric design (which relates to physical elements such as vertical and horizontal curves, lane widths, clearances, cross-section dimensions, etc7) traffic design and structural design. Good road design standards involve a combination of these three variable aspects to produce efficient and safer road.4.1 Ge ometric designRoad geometric design involves horizontal and vertical alignment and road cross-section, with the determination of these elements based on the criteria of road safety8. The reduction of the road accident rate is significantly influenced by these elements meaning there is a clear relationship between road design and road safety. For example, it has been found that junctions that are geometrically designed with road safety in mind see a smaller number of road accidents. Sound geometric design can involve a reduction in the number of conflict points (with the construction of channels). Indeed, it has been found that the use of roads with two lanes, which are each 3.7m wide, are safer than roads with one lane that is 2.7m wide9. In addition, it is felt that the presence of the median reduces the cross-median accident rate, even where it is narrow, and that the inclusion of safety fences at the outer acuteness of roads plays a significant role in road safety10. Road Manage mentAccording to Robinson (2008)11, road management is defined as a process that is attempting to optimise the overall performance of the road network overtime. This involves action that affects or can affect the road network quality and efficiency during the attend livelihoodspan and which facilitates trade, health protection, and education by enhancing accessibility. Further, the improvement of road efficiency, effectiveness and safety can lead to increasing economic well-being as a result of lower commodity prices. Road management is affected by a number of factors, but the dominant is accident levels and costs, which is directly related to road users and economic infrastructure12. As a consequence, road management action can involve the policing of vehicle speed in order to improve safety. Additionally, it can also include such activities which are conducted on the road itself and the surrounding environment, such as road maintenance. As Robinson (2008) states, the aim of road maintenance is to make roads safer because it contributes to the geometric factors in the areas ofPavement and footway surface Carriageway marking and delineation and Signs, street lights and furniture.13In this way, road safety can be incorporated in road management for example, the continuous repair of pavements reduces vehicle operating costs to be reduced and the rate of accidents on the road. Road intersectionsRoad intersections are a significant part of the road network structure, and in spite of their simple function, they contributes more than 20% of pitch-dark road accidents in the EU14 and even though it has been reported that about 31% of serious accidents occur in non-built-up areas, 65% occurred at built-area junctions in 1984 in the UK15. According to the Federal Highway Administration (2006)16, road intersection safety has become a considerable problem in the USA because more than 45% of around 2.7 million crashes that occurred there in 2004 happened at junctions . Unfortunately, despite the fact that junction design and traffic standards deliver seen a significant improvement generally, it has not caused a significant reduction in the rate of accidents per year. For those reasons, the FHWA support the concept of converting intersections to roundabouts in order to decrease the rate of accidents and to provide increase safety.Rate of fatal casualties in EU at junctions and other locations of roads Case studyA study was carried out in 8 States of the USA in 2004 for 24 junctions before and after conversion to roundabout. It resulted in a 39% reduction of overall crash rates, with a 90% and 76% reduction in the fatal and suffering crashes, respectively1. See Table 1.Reduction of crashes following roundabout conversions at 24 U.S. junctions In 8 states in USAReduction In Crashes % In 2004OverallFatalInjury -39%-90%-76%Table 1 the information from FHWA, 2006DiscussionThe reduction in the level of road traffic accidents in the case study proves that replacing junctions with roundabouts is the logical decision in the USA because it is clear that such a course of action increases overall safety. Unfortunately, the study sample is small as it does not cover all safety aspects, and the safety of the cyclist and pedestrian is not clarified because the crashes categorized are only based on motor vehicles. It should be noted that approximately 75% of cyclist accidents occur at roundabouts2. For that reason, the impact of roundabouts on passengers and cyclists is worthy of investigation.8.1 Roundabout and road designAccording to Fortuijn (2003)3, the majority of cyclist-car accidents occur when a cyclist is circulating in the roundabout and a car either enters or exits from the roundabout. It has also been said that roundabouts that are charactarised with a significant design feature (e.g. a requirement to reduce vehicle speed to 30phm, use of a central island, a right angle connection between roadways and circular roadways, or a right of way traffic movement) serve to reduce crash rates and cyclist accidents. Another feature that improves road safety at roundabouts is the reduction of conflict points to about a quarter of the number employ at other junctions.8.2. Roundabout and road managementModern roundabouts are recognised with high capacity, low speed, and non-use of signalisation. The use of roundabout signalisation is typical dependant on traffic volume and safety. Nevertheless, the roundabouts that dont use signalisation are still safer than junctions1. Further, the maintenance of traffic signs, lights and pavement surface serve to increase road life service and safety.The manufacture of vehicles with higher speed engines may serve to reduce the efficiency of roundabouts and increase the safety hazards to cyclists and pedestrians, especially at times of high traffic volume. According to the findings of the London Road Safety unit (2003)2, the roundabouts with signalisation are safer for both cycl ists and pedestrian, based on a study which was conducted in 2003 for a number of roundabouts, before and after signalisation ConclusionThis report has sought to demonstrate the impact of road safety in design and road management by defining and analysing the relevant concepts, with particular attention paying to cyclist and pedestrian safety. The following points were also concludedRoad accidents occur due to three main factors road users, environment and engineering. The level of road safety measures that are utilized depend on the volume of accidents. Road safety is incorporated into road design and management through incorporation of safety considerations. Road safety is improved through road maintenance. Roundabouts typically serve to reduce vehicle speed and conflict points, which in turn can reduce the road accident rate, and increase the safety of cyclists and pedestrian. It is believed that the road design and management plays a significant role in road safety enhancement t hrough the interaction of safety criteria with the road efficiency. Signalisation at roundabouts can increase the safety of cyclists and pedestrians, and a cyclist right of way can reduce the rate of car-cyclist accident ReferencesRobinson, R., & Thagesen, B. (2004). Road engineering for development, 2nd ed. Taylor & Francis. London.Moller, M., & Hels, T. (2008). Cyclists perception of risk in roundabouts.Accident Analysis & Prevention, 40(3), 1055-1062. online https//wiki.cecs.pdx.edu/pub/ItsWeb/BikeBoxes/Moller_Hels_2007.pdf accessed October 19th 2013Fortuijn, L. G. H. (2003). 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