Development of a Network-Level Road Safety Assessment Procedure Based on Human Factors Principles

Infrastructures Pub Date : 2024-02-16 DOI:10.3390/infrastructures9020035

Andrea Paliotto, M. Meocci

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Abstract

Road safety is a central issue in the management and development of a road network. Road agencies must try to identify the most dangerous sections of their network and act on them to improve safety. The most used procedure for this purpose is about considering the indicators based on crashes. However, a mature road safety management system must be able to assess the safety of a road section before accidents occur. The European community is moving in this direction with the update of Directive 2008/96/EC (Directive 1936/2019). This paper proposes a new methodology for carrying out a network-wide road safety assessment on rural single-carriageways and two-lane two-way roads. This procedure accounts for the influence of road characteristics on drivers’ perceptions. The methodology has been developed based on the human factors concepts from PIARC, and it includes a series of checklists that guide an inspector in carrying out a visual inspection of single-carriageway roads. The results from the checklist are then processed into an algorithm, and the level of risk in the analyzed section is provided. The objectives of the procedure are (a) to account for the perceptive aspects that are one of the major causes of road accidents, (b) to provide a proactive procedure in line with the requirements of the European Directive, and (c) to provide a useful instrument that can be easily implemented by road agencies and integrated with other analysis procedures. The procedure has been applied and tested on a case study of six different stretches of two-lane, two-way rural highways in Italy, Germany, and Slovenia (about 65 km). The results show a high degree of concordance with a risk classification based on the accident rate, mainly considering high-risk sections. Therefore, the procedure demonstrated its potential to be a useful instrument to be included in network safety assessments. Road agencies should consider the use of this procedure in their network safety analysis and ranking.

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基于人为因素原理开发网络级道路安全评估程序

道路安全是道路网络管理和发展的核心问题。道路管理机构必须设法确定其网络中最危险的路段，并采取相应措施来提高安全性。为此，最常用的程序是考虑基于碰撞事故的指标。然而，一个成熟的道路安全管理系统必须能够在事故发生之前评估路段的安全状况。随着第 2008/96/EC 号指令（第 1936/2019 号指令）的更新，欧洲共同体正朝着这个方向迈进。本文提出了一种新方法，用于对农村单车道和双线双向道路进行全网道路安全评估。该程序考虑了道路特征对驾驶员感知的影响。该方法以 PIARC 的人为因素概念为基础，包括一系列检查表，用于指导检查员对单车道道路进行目视检查。检查表的结果经过算法处理后，就能得出所分析路段的风险等级。该程序的目标是：(a) 考虑作为道路事故主要原因之一的感知方面；(b) 提供符合欧洲指令要求的前瞻性程序；(c) 提供便于道路机构实施并与其他分析程序相结合的有用工具。该程序已在意大利、德国和斯洛文尼亚的六条不同路段（约 65 公里）的双向双车道农村公路上进行了应用和测试。结果表明，主要考虑到高风险路段，该程序与基于事故率的风险分类高度一致。因此，该程序证明其有潜力成为网络安全评估中的有用工具。公路机构应考虑在其网络安全分析和排名中使用该程序。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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Infrastructures

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