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While left turn onto pedestrian crashes are less frequent and less severe than right turn on to pedestrian crashes, the risk of these crashes can be reduced using many similar techniques, including: - Exclusive pedestrian phases - Fully controlled left turns - Early...

“In what other industry would you find this sort of risk apathy?” was one of Kenn Beer’s thought-provoking questions in his Keynote presentation at the 129th Good Roads conference in Toronto this week. Kenn was invited to be a Keynote Speaker at the conference which...

We’re super excited to announce Sam Pasley as the Managing Director of Safe System Solutions Aotearoa New Zealand. We’re passionate about the implementation of the Safe System approach, and having Sam on the team will help us do this in Aotearoa New Zealand. Sam’s...

Coloured pavement markings for cyclist safety are used around the world for a variety of purposes, including to highlight areas where a conflict point exists between vehicles and cyclists, to direct cyclists along a particular path and also to highlight areas...

We’re often asked to undertake an evaluation of recently installed infrastructure, or recent road safety initiatives, but unfortunately there is often a large gap in baseline data (read: it doesn’t exist).   While not ideal, one should not despair. There are a few...

The gore area is the wedge between a freeway/motorway exit and the continuing road. Drivers need to navigate, decelerate, and change lanes at, or on the approach to, gore areas through specified and compacted geometry. This makes gore areas highly crash-prone...

There are a variety of High Profile Barrier Kerbs (sometimes called High Containment Kerbs) available. Midwest profile has been tested under NCHRP350 Test Level 2, vehicle speed 70km/h, impact angle 25 degrees and vehicle mass 2000kg. VicRoads RDN03-01 states it...

Coloured cycle lanes are used in many countries as a means to alert drivers to the possible presence of a cyclist, and also to guide cyclists along a preferred path. However, a 2008 Danish study found that coloured cycle lanes can have a detrimental effect in complex...

Bicycle storage boxes are intended to aid cyclists being seen, and give them an area to store during a red signal phase. However, according to two European studies, only 22% of all cyclists used the advanced stop line. The main reason for the low utilisation was that...

As vehicles have become more robust and sophisticated, drivers are becoming less aware of the importance of their tyres. Tyres have significantly improved in terms of safety, performance and wear, but they still need attention as one of the vehicle’s most critical...

 In a study of seat belt wearing amongst vehicle drivers, wearing rates for light vehicle drivers in NSW are well over 90% but the rates of seatbelt use by truck drivers were considerably lower at around 75%.  Some of the main findings of the report were:  There are...

The vertical alignment at a railway level crossing can be a critical factor in the risk of crashes involving larger/longer or lower vehicles.  The preference is for the road grading to be smooth at the crossing, however this is rarely possible. Usually, the rail...

There are approximately eight bicycle crashes for each bicycle crash that is reported in official crash statistics. When this under-reporting is considered, the crash rate for cyclists is almost 20 times that of car occupants.  More than 80% of all bicycle crashes...

Wire rope systems will deflect more on hot days and less on cold days. The required wire rope tension for a specific installation is calculated using the Annual Average Daily Temperature at site and the Product Manual. It is important for road designers to understand...

Slip base (frangible) poles are designed to shear at the base when impacted by errant vehicles. The height of the shearing plane should be 75mm above ground level with a ±25mm tolerance. Too high and the pole may snag a vehicle. Too low and the pole may not...

We’ve seen lots of crashes involving vehicles vaulting off a ramp-down end terminal, but this one is a first for us.  This should serve as a reminder to all of us that implement solutions on the transport network, they may be viewed through a different lens by...

Julian has been with SSS for 18 months as a Graduate Engineer. As an accredited Road Safety Auditor, he is one of our team delivering on the mission of creating safer roads for our communities. He recently organized an initiative with his colleagues that is close to...

Lowering vehicle speeds in urban areas is proven to save lives and reduce serious injuries, but here are some things that might surprise you:   Safer speeds help make healthier communities.  Lower vehicle speeds create a more comfortable environment for pedestrians...

While we’re not aware of any studies of the impact of spiders on Australian car crash rates (although most of us have encountered a huntsman in the car at one point), we do know that people leave the road for all sorts of reasons – spiders being just one. Falling...

Raised intersections on arterial roads can reduce casualty crashes by up to 40%.  Also known as platform intersections, raised junctions or plateaus, these speed management devices typically aim to reduce the speed of vehicles to 50 km/h or less. The entire...