Road Safety and How to Secure It
Page 67
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THE 15th Annual Conference of the Scottish Road Pas senger Transport Association opened at the Atholl Palace Hotel, Pitlochry, yesterday, when the first paper read was "Road Safety," by Mr. Norman A. Hardie, of the British Road Federation, and general manager (sales) of the Associated Equipment Co., Ltd.
The author refers to the problem of road safety as being a serious one, and the attention of the whole community is directed towards it Many suggestions have been made to ameliorate the position, but without any apparent effect, this being substantiated by the figures published in the White Paper of March 22, which show that there has been little change during the past five years.
An analysis of accidents proves a variety of causes, but it is contended that insufficient attention has been directed to the main one, viz„ the road system itself. Unfortunately for the case, the view of the Ministry of Transport may be ascertained from the report on fatal accidents for 1936. It suggests that out st 6,000 accidents investigated only 44 could be adjudged as primarily due to road conditions, and in only 214 cases were these considered to have played any part whatever, whilst in a recent inquiry when over 100,000 accidents were investigated, 90 per cent, were attributed to persons, and only 10 per cent to other circumstances.
Faults in Road Layout.
Speaking for the B.R.F., Mr. Hardie says that the validity of such findings are seriously challenged, and he states that it would appear that the Ministry, in its investigations, regards faults in layout of road construction of ress importance, and, in effect, advises the police to consider as defects in road design only such items as dangerous surfaces and blind corners.
There has been an amazing growth in vehicle traffic and passenger journeys. Compared with four years previously, the census of 1935 showed an increase of 35 per cent. in the vehicles passing 4,900 selected points on Class 1 roads, and although 1,700,000,000 passenger rail journeys were made annually, 10,000,000,000 were made by road.
One result of congestion was that motorists could make the entire northern circuit of London from Chiswick to Ilford, a distance of 23 miles, in less time than it took them to thread through traffic on the direct road.
There is no need for us to repeat the details of the Minister's analysis of road accidents included in the paper, as they have already been given in The Commercial Motor, but the author points out that if an attempt be made to attribute the vast proportion of accidents to causes other than road design and construction, important opinions expressed by independent authorities form a definite challenge to such a supposition.
Roundabouts Reduce Accidents.
The chief engineer of the Road Department of the Ministry of Transport, in a paper read last November, found that, following the construction of 23 roundabouts in selected places, the accidents at these points were reduced by 36 per cent. He advocated the diversion or through traffic around built-up areas, the provision of guard rails, crossings for pedestrians, and a minimum visibility of 500 ft. at curves, etc.
In a recent memorandum the Ministry recommended the realignment of the chief roads on modern lines, construction of by-passes and the segregation of oppositely flowing traffic as being features essential to safety. Surely, says the author, these statements constitute a clear admission that an absence of these features should count as contributory causes of accidents.
He proceeds to refer to the findings of the Highways Committee of Oxfordshire. In this report, it is mentioned that drivers run an average of 3,500,000 miles before becoming involved in a fatal accident, whilst not 5 per cent, of such accidents in the country appear to be due to drunkenness or excessive speed. Investigation over four years shows that 59 per cent. of accidents could have been prevented by removing ordinary road defects, and 78 per cent. by the adoption of the "ideal" scheme of dual carriageways. By improving rural sections of the five main roads of the county, fatalities were reduced by 44 per cent. Three years' observation on the Glasgow-Edinburgh Road by the Lanarkshire Authorities discloses that on lengths divided into dual carriageways accidents were 80 per cent. less than on the single-carriageway section. The B.R.F. contends that accident figures could be reduced by 50 per cent. if a modern system of roads, built in conformity with known traffic requirements, were constructed.
There has been an increase in road mileage of only 1.5 per cent. since 1910; in the same period the number of vehicles in use has been multiplied by 19. During the past 10 years in England 300 miles of new roads have been constructed, and already many have required complete reconstruction. There is a lack of centralized authority; yet good and adequate roads are a necessity to the whole community. The solution of the problem in this country is possibly more difficult thau elsewhere, but there are many methods of improvement well worthy of consideration. The construction of by-passes has proved particularly effective. Where small and crowded towns are located in valleys, entirely new overhead roads should be constructed, The utility of tunnels under rivers and, possibly, under main towns has not been fully explored. The building line should be definitely set back, and an increased height per.. nutted to compensate for the loss of area. It may be possible to raise the pavement level to the first floor. with street bridges between the pavements.
• Need for Traffic Segregation.
Insufficient attention has been paid to parking facilities, and this and time limits imposed are detrimental to the motor-user. Main-road junctions should be completely reconstructed with fly-over crossings and clover-leaf layouts. Wherever density of traffic exists, the various classes of user should be segregated. Classified roads should be illuminated by one standard method. Special motor roads should be designed for fast-moving traffic and be free from cross-roads, corners or speed limits.. They should be constructed from London to the main industrial centres.
In 1935-36 the sum collected from motor, users by the Government in excess of road costs amounted to £50,04:10,000. The cost of new roads should not be met by ordinary national expenditure, an alternative being a loan. The rearmament and building booms will not last for ever, and the Government should formulate a plan for maintaining employment. A motor-roads loan of, say, £200,000,000, issued at 3 per cent., secured on the proceeds of motoi taxation, and redeemable in 30 years would cost in interes1 and amortization just over £10,000000 per annum, a paltry figure compared with the yield from the niotorin community.
Improved road conditions would contribute even greate: revenue to the Exchequer, and would greatly benefit indus tries engaged in the production of road plant, equipmen and materials.
The B.R.F. draws its membership from 50 association all interested in some form of road transport, but air suggestion that the Federation might be accused of motive for its individual or collective benefit is strongly refuted and the author asks that the paper shall be accepted as a unbiased and honest endeavour to surmount a gray national shortcoming.