Regional Road Safety Workshop Benefit of using the Road Safety Manuals

Content I | Road Accidents as a global perspective II | Accident rates in some countries III | Road Accidents as a Health Problem IV | Road Accidents as an economic problem V | Current Status in African countries VI | Filling the gap – Benefit of using the Manuals VII | Presentation of the Manuals Examples

Road accidents from a global perspective Every year more than 1.2 million people die in road crashes around the world

Road accidents from a global perspective The majority of these deaths (70%) occur in developing countries

Accident rates in some countries

Road Safety as a Health Problem Road Accidents are the most common cause of death for the age group 15-45 years in most countries In 2020 road accidents are expected to be the third highest cause of death in the world

Road Accidents as an Economic Problem In most countries the loss to road accidents amounts to 1-3% of the Gross National Product

“The earlier the better” Road Safety Strategies User behaviour Vehicle Road And will face a tragic situation if no actions are taken Africa has not yet reached the top rate of its motorization

Current Status in African countries Some countries have RSA Manuals but RSA is not a mandatory procedure Knowledge on accidents factors etc. is still very limited Institutional framework for Road Safety is not yet developed: very few countries gave Road Safety Policy Road Safety Strategies were developed in the framework of the UN Decade but are not implemented Road Safety capacity/training is still weak: very few universities have Road Safety curriculum, professional training & certification is not developed

Filling the Gap – Benefit of Using the Road Safety Manuals Based on best practices from a number of countries worldwide, including current practices in Africa Adopting a ‘Safe System’ approach concerned with engineering the road environment so that only low severity crashes are possible when users make mistakes The approach has been tailored for practical application in Africa Manuals provide a common, easy way for handling Road Safety initiative in an African context Provide management tool for assistance to prioritized areas

Filling the Gap – Benefit of Using the Road Safety Manuals Cost effective solutions Creating local capacities and employment opportunities Positive impact on the entire population Improving efficiency of the road transport sector Contribute to reduce poverty

The Road Safety Manuals – New Roads and Scheme. Road Safety Audit Objective: The objective of a RSA is to identify potential safety problems so that, where possible, the design/works can be changed to eliminate or reduce them – ideally before the scheme is built and operational. How: An experienced RSA Team examines a new road project or highway improvement project at different stages of development to detect defects or features that may contribute to casualty crashes or to the severity of such crashes. It relies on a basic understanding of the typical crashes that are likely to occur on such roads either through historic crash data or through experience. RSA is an independent procedure

The Road Safety Manuals – New Roads and Scheme. Road Safety Audit A formal and systematic procedure to assess the safety of new constructions In order to ensure that the road project is as safer as possible for all users

The Road Safety Manuals – New Roads and Scheme. Road Safety Audit A Road Safety Audit identifies failures in a road project before the road is constructed Audit is cost-efficient and can save many lives

The Road Safety Manuals – New Roads and Scheme. Road Safety Audit WHAT IS NOT AN AUDIT It is not a technical control of road projects It is not a check of road standards Recommendations from Audit are not mandatory for the Client Road Safety Audits are not only for big projects, all road projects can be audited

The Road Safety Manuals – New Roads and Scheme. Road Safety Audit

Example: An Audit can reduce accidents by 50% before the road is built Example: An Audit can reduce accidents by 50% before the road is built. With a cost of less 5% of the total road budget

The Road Safety Manuals – Road Safety Inspection On existing Roads Not related to a road project

The Road Safety Manuals Concept : Useful where crash data are not yet available or where details such as precise crash coordinates are not recorded While proactive approaches are useful, they do not replace the need for good quality crash data to guide and direct road safety practices. They can be used while the quality and availability of crash data is improved, or as a complementary approach to those described in the ‘Existing Roads: Reactive Approaches’ manual

The Road Safety Manuals A two stage process

The Road Safety Manuals Road Safety Inspection Based on norms and Guidelines/Manuals Road safety Inspection should be systematic and independent Road Safety Inspection should be carried out by Certified inspectors/Auditors Road Safety Inspection should be integrated into Roas Safety Action Plans

The Road Safety Manuals – Reactive approaches Concept & Benefits Using intelligence to direct and inform road safety programmes and individual interventions is known as taking a ‘reactive’ approach Involves using crash data to identify high risk locations (known as blackspots, hazardous locations or hotspots), routes or areas across the road network Once a high risk location has been identified, the site is reviewed in detail and a treatment programme devised. Interventions can be targeted and designed to be as effective and efficient as possible Effectiveness of treatments can be evaluated

The Road Safety Manuals – Reactive approaches Accident Data Each accident provides key information for Road Safety Major source of Accident Data are Traffic Police Reports, Hospitals, Accident Information Systems Data and accident location are needed Reactive approaches are a long term process: a period of at least 2 to 3 years is generally required for statistical analysis

The Road Safety Manuals – Reactive approaches Embedding & organizing Reactive approaches Reactive approach is a long term and multidisciplinary process – key responsibilities Road Safety National Committee / Commission Road Authorities Traffic Police Designers Health services

Example: Cost-benefit of a Road Safety Audit in some countries A major benefit of Road Safety Audit is that accidents are prevented before they happen and that any deficiencies in the road can be repaired before the road is built.

Example: cost-benefit of Blackspot treatment Targeted Black Spot % Accident reduction Pedestrian treatment (traffic signals) 42 to 49% pedestrian crashes and 38% all crashes Pedestrian treatment (non signal: refuges, kerb etc. ) 68% pedestrian crashes and 27% all crashes Roadside treatment 50 to 68% roadside crashes Off-path/head-on treatments 40% all crashes Research works on Black Spot Treatment around the world have shown a high potential for accident reduction Some examples from European Research:

Impact on population and economy Reduce traffic death & injuries Reduce economic cost of accidents Create employment opportunities Improve performance of transport sector Sustainable growth

Road Safety to achieve Development Goals (SDG) – A Global Development Strategy The goal is to reduce traffic injuries and fatalities by 50% by 2020 The approach emphasises safe systems It is recommended to establish Road Safety Policy & Strategy It is recommended to establish Road Safety Action Plans

Improved sector coordination Road Safety is multidisciplinary – Encouraging sector coordination by using the Manuals: High level Political support (Prime Minister) Sector coordination (commission/committee) Legal basis for embedding the Manuals (Legal Act/Text) Clear organization: Role and responsibilities (Road Agency, Designer, Road Safety Team…) Clear protocol and procedures (time, stages, types etc.) Training local consultants/contractors – certifying auditors and inspectors Funding mechanism (project investment, road maintenance fund, tax on fuel, insurance etc.) Monitoring mechanisms Regional coordination for the benefit of international transport and integration