TOWN PLANNING AND ROAD SAFETY. A REVIEW OF LITERATURE AND PRACTICE

This is the Final Report of a project (IRRD No. 605759) which involved a critical review of Australian and overseas urban planning practice aimed at road safety improvements, based on direct contact with urban local government authorities and planning bodies and an extensive literature search. The Report summarises the sources of information, then outlines the recommended planning practices found in key Australian, Swedish and South African guidelines. The extent of actual application of these principles is then discussed. The effectiveness of the measures was of principal interest, and so reports of monitoring and evaluation were particularly sought. It became evident that there is much opinion on this subject, less real action, and very little proof or demonstrated justification. It was concluded that there are opportunities for reductions in accidents through the more familiar planning measures (town centre pedestrian schemes, urban structure plans, the introduction of segregated bicycle routes into existing cities, etc), but these are limited or are unlikely to be cost-effective in the Australian context. However, there is scope for significant improvement to safety in local areas, where up to one third of urban casualties occur and planning action can have a direct influence. Research is recommended to obtain basic information on the nature and geographic distribution of accidents, and the potential for town planning countermeasures. Other specific studies are suggested. A bibliography is included, and several more detailed background reports are referred to.

• Corporate Authors:

  ARRB

  Melbourne, Victoria  Australia 

  Department of Transport, Australia

  Office of Road Safety, P.O. Box 594
  Canberra, A.C.T. 2601,   Australia 
• Authors:
  • BRINDLE, R E
• Publication Date: 1984-6

Media Info

• Features: Appendices; Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 88 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Bibliographies; City planning; Countermeasures; Guidelines; Highway safety; Measures of effectiveness; Safety; State of the art studies; Traffic safety
• Uncontrolled Terms: Effectiveness
• Geographic Terms: Australia; South Africa; Sweden
• Subject Areas: Highways; Planning and Forecasting; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00394997
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
• Report/Paper Numbers: CR 33, HS-037 850, ARRB SR 28
• Files: HSL, TRIS, USDOT
• Created Date: Jun 30 1985 12:00AM