Why We Fight About Black Spots

The road agency in Montreal, like that of many cities, works under a policy of fixing motorist-collision "black spots," where a black spot is an intersection with 8 or more collisions in a 5-year period. The unspoken premise of this policy seems to be that a higher frequency of collisions is evidence of design problems unique to that intersection. However, this paper cites recent research that suggests that faults in the road design are not site-specific but are nearly universal. This research found that one-quarter of all intersections in central Montreal were the site of at least one motorist-pedestrian collision over a period of 5 years. Reducing this collision risk will require modifying intersection design to make streets safe for walking, changing policies at the national and global levels to encourage a better balance between protecting pedestrians and minimizing traffic delay, and improving communication between injury prevention specialists and traffic engineers.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/13538047
• Authors:
  • Jacobsen, P L
• Publication Date: 2006-12

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Print
• Features: References;
• Pagination: pp 356-357
• Serial:
  • Injury Prevention
  • Volume: 12
  • Issue Number: 6
  • Publisher: BMJ Publishing Group
  • ISSN: 1353-8047
  • EISSN: 1475-5785
  • Serial URL: http://injuryprevention.bmj.com/

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: High risk locations; Highway design; Highway factors in crashes; Intersections; Pedestrian safety; Pedestrian vehicle crashes; Pedestrian vehicle interface; Policy; Traffic engineering
• Geographic Terms: Montreal (Canada)
• Subject Areas: Design; Highways; Planning and Forecasting; Policy; Safety and Human Factors; I21: Planning of Transport Infrastructure; I82: Accidents and Transport Infrastructure;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01042360
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Feb 28 2007 9:02PM