Essay on Road Accidents: Causes and Preventive Remedies! Also learn about: 1. Causes of Road Accidents, 2. Accident Studies 3. Preventive Measures and Remedies to Reduce Accident Rates in India.
Road accidents, as the name itself suggests, are random events that are caused by the interplay of diverse factors relating to the road and its condition, the road users, the vehicles, and environmental conditions. Invariably, a combination of two or more of these factors may lead to accidents.
An undesirable feature of highway transport is the occurrence of accidents and consequent loss of lives and property. The spectacular increase of vehicles on the road has been causing a steady growth accident rates on highways. India has a poor record of road safety with a large number of accidents as well as fatalities.
This has become a major social problem and deserves special attention from the highway and traffic engineers. Based on a scientific analysis of the causes of accidents, the traffic engineer has to devise ways to reduce them through better design, construction, and maintenance of highways, and through better traffic operation and regulation.
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Heavy economic losses and human misery caused by accidents indicate the need for systematic accident studies. The data obtained from an analysis of accidents helps the engineer to evolve improvement schemes and regulatory measures to enhance road safety and decrease accidents.
Essay on the Causes of Road Accidents:
Road accidents, as the name itself suggests, are random events that are caused by the interplay of diverse factors relating to the road and its condition, the road users, the vehicles, and environmental conditions. Invariably, a combination of two or more of these factors may lead to accidents.
The following is a brief summary of the causes of accidents on roads:
1. Road and Road Conditions:
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Faulty geometric design components like sight distance, shoulders, super-elevation, transitions and inadequate traffic control devices cause accidents, as do slippery road conditions with inadequate friction leading to skidding and pot holes, ruts and damaged conditions of the surface.
2. Road Users:
The drivers of vehicles can cause accidents through rash driving and excessive speed, violation of traffic rules, traffic signs and signals, through fatigue due to excessive continuous driving, alcoholism and drunken driving. In addition, bus passengers can cause accidents while getting into and alighting from moving vehicles, and distracting the driver’s attention. Pedestrians using the carriageway and violating regulations can also cause accidents.
3. Vehicles:
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Mechanical defects of vehicles like failure of brakes, tyre burst, and steering system invariably lead to traffic accidents.
4. Weather:
Unfavourable weather conditions such as fog, heavy rainfall, dust and smoke render driving unsafe, leading to accidents.
5. Miscellaneous:
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Stray animals, unmanned level crossings, advertisement boards and hoardings affecting visibility and distracting the drivers’ attention and a host of other such things may also cause road accidents.
Accident Records:
The importance of collecting and recording accurate and comprehensive information relating to road accidents cannot be over-emphasised. Such records help to identify the causes of road accidents and evolve methods of overcoming the deficiencies observed; statistical techniques may also be used in the analysis of accident data.
The IRC have prescribed standard accident reporting forms – Form A-1-for collecting the details of an accident and Form 4 for summary of road accidents in a state during the year.
The particulars in Form A-l are in the following heads:
The particulars in Form-4 record the total number of accidents under the following heads:
Accident records should be maintained in the form of location files along with spot maps, collision diagrams and conditions diagrams. A simple legend as the one shown below is used to indicate the type of accident in the spot maps.
Collision Diagram:
A collision diagram is a diagrammatic representation of the different kinds of accidents occurring at a particular location. It is a map of the location showing the approximate paths of vehicles and pedestrians involved in the accidents; it need not necessarily be to scale. The vehicle paths shown by means of arrows need not be exact for all the vehicles, in order to avoid overlap confusion. The date and time of each accident may be noted on one of arrows relating to it.
A uniform system of symbols is necessary to identify the details and the nature of the accidents (Fig. 4.19).
A typical collision diagram is shown in Fig. 4.20.
Such collision diagrams help in studying accident patterns and evolving remedial measures.
Condition Diagram:
A condition diagram is a plan drawn to scale (1:100 to 1:250) showing all the important physical features at an accident location. Such a diagram aids the process of determining the causes of an accident.
The following features have to be shown on the conditions diagram of an accident location:
(i) Geometric features like road width, shoulder width, kerb lines, corner radii, etc.
(ii) Footpaths, driveways
(iii) Cycle tracks, if any
(iv) Obstructions to line of sight, if any
(v) Trees, bushes, raised kerbs for channelisation
(vi) Traffic signs, signals and road markings
(vii) Culverts, bridges, underpasses.
(ix) Property lights.
Standard symbols are used to represent these features on a condition diagram (Fig. 4.21).
A typical condition diagram is shown in Fig. 4.22.
Accident studies comprise the following:
A mobile laboratory comes in handy to the traffic engineer who should reach the accident spot as soon as possible.
The following investigations are necessary for a scientific analysis:
(i) Recording general details – The particulars listed in Form A-land presented above have to be filled in. A conditions diagram of the accident location should be prepared along with the measurements.
(ii) Skid resistance of the pavement surface along the skid marks, if any, should be measured using a pendulum type tester.
(iii) The driver’s characteristics such as reaction time, vision details, and the alcohol content in their blood, if any, should be tested. Blood test will be needed only if the result of the breath analyser test is positive. [A collision diagram should be prepared with the paths of the vehicles and other relevant details. The records of the accident should be properly kept.]
(iv) The relevant tests on the vehicles involved in the accident have to be conducted and the results recorded.
(v) The probable causes of the accident should be assessed and recorded.
(vi) The cost of the accident’s consequence has to be estimated—in terms of the persons involved, vehicle damages, property damages, traffic delays and legal proceedings.
(2) Analysis of Individual Accident:
Different possibilities may be analysed.
Two common situations are given below, based on the following assumptions:
When skid marks are observed, skid resistance is measured to find the actual braking distance. If skid marks are not at all visible, a free collision without the application of brakes is assumed.
Let the masses of vehicles be ma and mb, and their speeds va and vb. If both are perfectly plastic, both would move together with the same speed, v’, after impact.
The equation is-
If e is not known, it may be assumed suitably. The impact may be direct or oblique, the angle being known. The friction coefficient of the pavement may be determined or assumed suitably.
The basic equation for a vehicle of weight W to slow down from speed v1 to v2 may be obtained by equating the reduction in kinetic energy with the work done against the frictional force –
(I) Collision with a Parked Vehicle:
If a vehicle A, moving at v1 m/s skids through a distance, Sa, after the application of brakes and collides with a parked vehicle, P, and the two vehicles skid together through a distance, Sp , before coming to a stop, the initial speed v1 of the vehicle A can be calculated as follows-
(II) Collision between two Vehicles Approaching from Perpendicular Directions:
Let two vehicles A and B approach an intersection from perpendicular directions, collide with each other and skid further in different directions as shown in Fig. 4.23 [(a), (b) and (c)].
Nomogram charts are prepared for solving Eq. 4.33 and Eqs. 4.36 to 4.42 for the initial speeds Va1 and Vb1 for specific values of the friction coefficient, ƒ.
Other types of collisions such as head-on collision of two vehicles approaching from opposite directions are less common. However, they can also be analysed subject to certain simplifying assumptions.
(3) Statistical Analysis of Accidents:
Statistical analysis of road accidents is useful in assessing the effectiveness of the measures taken to decrease the accident rate; this helps in comparing the relative safety of different stretches of a highway. Accident rate may be expressed in terms of the number of vehicles per unit population or the distance traversed by vehicles (vehicle-km) per unit population. Accident density per unit length of road can also be used.
The reliability of statistical analysis of accidents is directly related to that of the accident data obtained from accident records.
Essay on the Preventive Measures and Remedies to Reduce Accident Rates:
The following are the categories of preventive measures to reduce accident rates:
(1) Engineering
(2) Enforcement
(3) Education
These are generally referred to as the “Three E’s in traffic engineering.
(1) Engineering Measures:
The following are some of the important measures which fall in this category:
(i) Proper design of geometric elements of the road like horizontal curves, super elevation, vertical curves and gradients, carriageway and shoulders, sight-distance and road intersections.
(ii) Speed control measures like rumble strips.
(iii) “Before and after” studies of preventive measures to study the effectiveness of these for reduction of accident rate.
(iv) Road lighting and illumination, including proper maintenance.
(v) Preventive maintenance of vehicles, brakes, steering, and lights. Usage of seat belts and air bags in cars.
(2) Enforcement Measures:
These measures include:
(i) Traffic regulations like one-way traffic.
(ii) Traffic signs and signals – taking cognisance and observing them.
(iii) Speed zoning or speed limits for different stretches.
(iv) Control of pedestrian traffic through pedestrian crossings and signals.
(v) Parking control measures.
(vi) Training and supervision of drivers including strictness in issuing driving license for different purposes.
(vii) Testing of drivers for vision and reaction time at suitable intervals.
(viii) Channelisation by providing separate lanes for cars, buses trucks, as also cycle tracks if the cycle traffic volume demands.
(3) Education Measures:
These measures include:
(i) Education on road safety in schools and educational institutions.
(ii) Use of mass media like print and electronic media, films and documentaries for road safety propaganda.
(iii) Use of helmets by two-wheeler rides.
(iv) Organisation of safety campaigns like “safety week” from time to time.
(v) Education of road users.