REFLECTIONS ON KEEPING DEATH OFF THE ROAD

Despite road safety programmes over the last 30 years, road traffic accidents account for a major proportion of deaths of people in Western Europe up to the age of 34. The cost of road accidents as regards loss of production, emergency and health services etc is considerable, but because of pressure on public spending in recent years in the United Kingdom smaller sums have been available for highway budgets. Cost effectiveness has therefore become a prime consideration for the initiation and maintenance of road safety programmes. Engineering improvements to the road environment offer one of the most cost-effective means of improving road safety. Amongst the range of remedial engineering measures that can be employed, reflectorized road markings are one of the most cost-effective. In rural and urban areas, on long stretches of road, and at black sites their versatility makes them an appropriate solution for a large number of problems, e.g. The best solution for easing traffic flow and preventing head on collisions is the application of a reflectorized centre line. On rural roads the addition of edgelines to roads with existing centre lines can also be extremely effective. Tables are presented showing before and after accident data at various locations exhibiting different types of accident problems. It is shown overwhelmingly the very high benefit to cost return of various highway engineering measures (reflectorized markings, channelization, parking restrictions) taken to reduce accidents. It is recommended that reflectorized road markings and other low-cost engineering improvements for road safety should take a high priority in highway programmes both in central and local government. (TRRL)

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/00396303
• Corporate Authors:

  IPC Building and Contract Journals Limited

  Surrey House, 1 Throwley Way
  Sutton, Surrey SM1 4QQ,   England 
• Authors:
  • Jackson, J
• Publication Date: 1983-4-7

Media Info

• Features: Photos; References; Tables;
• Pagination: p. 10-12
• Serial:
  • SURVEYOR
  • Volume: 161
  • Issue Number: 4736
  • Publisher: Hemming Group, Limited
  • ISSN: 0039-6303

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Before and after studies; Benefit cost analysis; Cost effectiveness; Crash rates; Crashes; Economic efficiency; Edge lines; High risk locations; Land water marginal areas; Paint; Parking regulations; Prevention; Reflective signs; Reflectorized materials; Road markings; Rural areas; Rural highways; Safety; Traffic lanes
• Uncontrolled Terms: Channelization; Marginal strips
• Old TRIS Terms: Reflector markers; Traffic marking
• ITRD Terms: 1663: Accident black spot; 1661: Accident prevention; 9148: Before and after study; 562: Carriageway marking; 226: Cost benefit analysis; 237: Economic efficiency; 2847: Marginal strip; 3807: Paint; 4523: Reflectorized material; 328: Rural area; 2827: Traffic lane
• Subject Areas: Economics; Highways; Materials; Operations and Traffic Management; Safety and Human Factors; Security and Emergencies; I35: Miscellaneous Materials; I73: Traffic Control; I85: Safety Devices used in Transport Infrastructure;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00381150
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Transport Research Laboratory
• Files: ITRD, TRIS
• Created Date: Mar 30 1984 12:00AM