ACCIDENTS: THEIR COST AND RELATION TO SURFACE CHARACTERISTICS

It is a well established fact that road surface characteristics can have a significant effect on accidents. over the years many examples have been cited of reduction in accidents brought about by changes in surface to improve skidding resistance, but it is largely only in this field that beneficial effects have been associated with surface properties. Rather less attention has been paid to the role of the surface in aiding safety at night, the requirements for improving reflection characteristics of road surfaces having largely been eclipsed by the skidding requirements. Further, the more general problem of impaired visibility under wet weather conditions has hardly been associated at all with surface texture from the viewpoint of road safety. This paper aims to bring together some of the different aspects of surface characteristics in relation to accident risk, and to show the potential for reduction in accidents by changes in texture. As a background to this, the general accident situation will be reviewed and some of the underlying causes discussed, together with an indication of costs associated with road accidents. /Author/

• Supplemental Notes:
  • Presented at the Symposium on Safety and the Concrete Road Surface. See also IRRD No. 216335.
• Corporate Authors:

  Transport and Road Research Laboratory (TRRL)

  Wokingham, Berkshire  United Kingdom 
• Authors:
  • SABEY, B E
• Publication Date: 1973

Language

• English

Media Info

• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 12 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Costs; Crash causes; Crash investigation; Crashes; Highway safety; Moisture content; Night visibility; Pavements; Reflectivity; Skid resistance; Surface course (Pavements); Texture
• Uncontrolled Terms: Accident costs; Wet conditions
• ITRD Terms: 1643: Accident; 1661: Accident prevention; 8525: Conference; 224: Cost; 9008: Daylight; 9052: Night; 5926: Reflectivity; 3031: Skid resistance; 3053: Surface texture; 2972: Surfacing; 8119: United Kingdom; 6783: Visibility; 3015: Wet road
• Subject Areas: Finance; Highways; Pavements; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00080851
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Transport and Road Research Laboratory (TRRL)
• Report/Paper Numbers: Conf Paper
• Files: ITRD, TRIS
• Created Date: May 29 1975 12:00AM