Raise the inherent safety and protective quality of road networks for the benefit of all road users, especially the most vulnerable (e.g. pedestrians, bicyclists and motorcyclists). This will be achieved through the implementation of road infrastructure assessment and improved safety-conscious planning, design, construction and operation of roads.

Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-2020

4 October 2013Presented by

Nazir AlliSANRAL CEO 1

PILLAR 2: Safer Roads and Mobility

Safer Roads and Mobility

South Africa 2011/12• 13 932 Fatalities (RTMC)

– Drivers: 3 763– Passengers: 4 458– Pedestrians: 5 154– Cyclists: 557

Drivers, 4066, 30%

Passengers, 5023, 36%

Pedestrians 4678, 34%Passengers 32% Drivers 27%

Pedestrians 37% / Cyclist 4%

SADC COUNTRIES # ROAD DEATHS SPLIT PER ROAD USER

Pedestrians50%

Other1%

Drivers/Passeng ers Vehicles

45%

Cyclist3%

Motor cyclists1%

SADC Region : +/- 63 000 Road Fatalities per year

Road Safety Challenges

South Africa 2011/12

Safe Systems Approach• The guiding principles underlying the Global Plan for

Decade of Action for Road Safety, includes the Safe Systems approach

• The Philosophy of the Safe Systems approach:– Despite all efforts to prevent crashes, road users will remain

fallible and crashes will occur.– Safe System approach is to ensure that in the event of a crash,

the impact energies remain below the threshold likely to produce either death or serious injury.

– It stresses that those involved in the design of the road transport system need to accept and share responsibility for the safety of the system, and those that use the system need to accept responsibility for complying with the rules and constraints of the system.

Safer Roads and Mobility

Road Safety Challenges

Safe Systems Approach• Complying with Rules and Constraints is a challenge in South

Africa• In addition, we are faced with poor land use planning that

have resulted in unsafe desire lines for pedestrians.– The poorest of the poor travel long and dangerous

journeys by foot, and for them road safety often competes on a hierarchy of social needs.

Safer Roads and Mobility

Road Safety Challenges

• Case Study: N1 Hex River Pass• Series of Engineering Safety Measures to prevent

vehicles from loosing control and crashing

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Compulsory Stop Dedicated Crawler Lane Arrestor Bed

Warning Signs and Street lighting Concrete Barrier Wall

Road Safety Challenges

Non compliance can be fatal

Safer Roads and Mobility

1st Bus Accident 5 May 2010, 24 fatalities

2nd Bus Accident 15 March 2013, 23 fatalities

Road Safety Challenges

Forcing compliance ??– Use Technology to Enforce Compulsory Stop at top of Pass

• Red light / STOP Violation Camera• Automatic Number Plate Recognition

Safer Roads and Mobility

Road Safety Challenges

Safer Roads and Mobility

Question: How does one eat an elephant?

http://www.reliefteaching.com/teaching-strategies-4/

Answer: One bite at a time!

The Road Environment

Road Safety Trends

• Must be Planned, Designed and Built to be:• Self Explaining, to increase road users

expectancy• Forgiving, because we humans will make

mistakes• To influence road user behaviour such as:

• Speed Management• Channelizing pedestrians

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Road Safety Engineering Interventions

Safer Roads and Mobility

• We must be guided by leading Fatal and Serious Injury Crash Types and Trends

– Pedestrian crashes

– Vehicular crashes• Intersections• Head-on collisions• Single vehicle (leaving the roadway)

– Excessive Speeding (driving to fast for conditions)

Roundabouts

2 + 1 Configuration

Recovery Zones

Pedestrian Crashes

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– Genuine need for pedestrians to cross or travel along major routes.

• They are the most Vulnerable of Road Users• They are mostly the Poorest of the Poor - Captive Road Users

– Pedestrian are also road users, cannot wish them away, or pretend they do not exist

– At pedestrian high activity locations, we need to reduce operating speeds and/or modify the road environment to allow the road space to be shared safely

Pedestrian Infrastructure

Safer Roads and Mobility

60

Modifying the Road Environment

Pedestrian Bridges provide safer alternatives

Pedestrian Road Safety Education and Awareness

Safer Roads and Mobility

• Safer roads need a long term investment regarding education & awareness programmes – the return on your investment is however, not immediate;

• Results of our efforts will only be known when the current grade 1 learner becomes a driver;

• Integrated proactive approach where infrastructure development are preceded by human development;

• Community Development approach of human development through training & awareness programmes developed for specific target groups.

Pedestrian Road Safety Education and Awareness

Safer Roads and Mobility

• Example of what can be done:-– Education – making road safety practical in schools

• 2012 -2013 up to September 2013 – 1 410 educators attended workshops, 5 911 educators implemented road safety education in class – 416 739 learners to benefit

• Road safety art competition – to test the knowledge of learners on road safety – 1 281 schools were invited – winners will be announced at the end of October.

– Awareness • Chekicoast campaign aimed at the age group under 25;• Facebook page – www.facebook.com/chekicoast;• T-shirt competition – entries closed beginning of

September and the winner will be announced during October

Speed Management

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– Design the road for the intended operating speed.– 85th percentile speed

– Work closely with Law Enforcement to identify locations where speeding is known to contribute to high crash rates– Focus law enforcement resources to where it is

needed most– Covert (Hidden) versus Visible Law EnforcementN1 Three Sisters

Road Network Safety Programmes

Safer Roads and Mobility

• Ensuring a safe road environment with effective maintenance programmes

• Hazardous Location Programmes– We know where the hazardous locations are ?– Focus our resources on gain quick wins

• Road Safety Assessment Tools– iRAP / Netsafe (Pooling our resources)

– Identification of High Risk Roads, – propose and implement remedial measures

• Road Safety Audits– Independent Audits of Road Designs– Revised South African Road Safety Audit Manual

Embrace ITS Technologies

Safer Roads and Mobility

• Speed Enforcement • Average Speed Over Distance (ASOD)

• Freeway Management Systems• WC, KZN and GP• Faster Incident Detection and Responses

• Reduce response times• Improved clearance times for crashes Automatic Number

Plate Recognition

Embrace ITS Technologies

Safer Roads and Mobility

Accident happens

---Traffic flow

disrupted

Accident reported

Emergency

Services dispatche

d

Arrive on scene

Leave scene

Traffic flow back to normal

(With FMS) Reduce length of Incident Timeline

Life

Death

Minimise Road

User Costs

Incident Timeline

Recommendations

Safer Roads and Mobility

• Safe Systems Approach is supported, and high rates of non-compliance and historical factors must be duly considered in this approach

• Road Safety Engineering interventions must be guided by main crash types and trends for higher road safety returns

• Road Authorities should implement and maintain Road Safety Network Programmes

• The benefits of the using Technology to address road safety must be considered where appropriate

Thank you for your attention !

Safer Roads and Mobility