Designing Safer Roadsides & The Passive Revolution

Andrew Pledge

A brief history of Passive Safety - In the beginning.. Standards & Advice - EN12767:2000, TA 89/04 & TA 89/05 Where we are now - The UK Annexe to EN 12767:2007 & TPR handbook The future – More practical advice from TPR The Passive Revolution – www.thepassiverevolution.co.uk Seminars, awards , articles & TRAFFEX Crash demonstration days Working with EuroRAP UK Roads & “Seeing is Believing”

In the beginning..

Vision Zero: a Safe Traffic Concept On October 9, 1997 a Road Traffic Safety Bill founded on "Vision Zero" was passed by a large majority in the Swedish Parliament. This represented an entirely new way of thinking with respect to road traffic safety.

The long term goal was that no-one should be killed or seriously injured within the Swedish road transport system.

Ethics “It can never be ethically acceptable that people are killed or seriously injured when moving within the road transport system” Why? Partly because being a road user is not a voluntary activity

New approach to responsibilities • Historically, the main responsibility was wholly on the road user. • Vision Zero suggests a shared responsibility

Road

Vehicle

Behavior

a shared responsibility - manufacturer, road authority and road user

The designers of the system are always ultimately responsible for the design, operation and use of the road transport system and are thereby responsible for the level of safety within the entire system.

• Road-users are responsible for following the rules for using the road transport system set by the system designers. • If road-users fail to obey these rules due to a lack of knowledge, acceptance or ability, and injuries occur, the system designers are required to take the necessary further steps to counteract people being killed and seriously injured

Vision Zero philosophy

• Personal injuries are the problem - not accidents • Human tolerance for biomechanical forces is the starting-point for design

Vision Zero philosophy Vulnerable road users should not be exposed to motorised vehicles at speeds exceeding 30 km/h Car occupants should not be exposed to other motorised vehicles at speeds exceeding 50 km/h in 90 degree crossings

Vision Zero philosophy Car occupants should not be exposed to oncoming traffic (other vehicles of approximately same weight) at speeds exceeding 70 km/h or 50 km/h (if oncoming vehicles are of considerably different weight)

Car occupants should not be exposed to the road side in speeds exceeding 70 km/h or 50 km/h (if road side contains trees or other narrow objects)

• To create an error-tolerant transport system, e.g. a system where accidents can happen without severe human injury • Widespread use of these principles in built-up areas in Sweden • Some use of principles on rural roads e.g. 2+1 roads • Full implementation of these principles would give a new 5-star rating in EuroRAP

1. head-on crashes 2. brutal side impacts at junctions 3. run-off crashes with roadside objects 4. pedestrians & cyclists

How can the road be designed to reduce severe injury?

• By removing opportunities for collisions – separating road users • By making impacts less severe – eg cushioning impacts with barriers • By managing kinetic energy – speed reduction

• The level of safety can be substantially improved by applying these design principles to all roads and streets

•

At the German Grand Prix 2001 at Hockenheimring Luciano Burti crashes during the start into the slow driving Michael Schumacher. Both drivers are able to join the race at the re-start.

• Martin Brundle just at the moment he hits the wall at Melbourne in 1996. The car was separated into two parts, but Brundle was able to leave it almost unhurt.

• The heavy mass-crash with nearly 20 cars being involved at the Belgian Grand Prix 1998 at Spa-Francorchamps. All the drivers left their cars unhurt.

• Considered to be the home of the British Grand Prix, Silverstone Racing Circuit has hosted Formula One since 1950. • Circuit design to protect the safety of drivers is becoming increasingly sophisticated •

Where in the 1950s a driver was lucky to find a strategically placed straw bale to absorb his impact, modern Formula One circuits feature gravel traps and tyre barriers to reduce risk of injury in crashes. This is an ongoing task, the FIA have mandated further changes to circuits since 1994.

• Improvements were mostly aimed at better matching how fast a car is travelling when an accident occurs with the runoff space available for it to decelerate and at improving the ability of barriers to safely absorb the energy of a crash • Recent work on track safety at Silverstone involved the conversion of gravel run-offs at Woodcote and Stowe corners to the latest FIA-specification high friction tarmac. • New, more forgiving, restraint systems have been installed around the 3.19-mile circuit.

Lewis Hamilton

•

JULY 21st 2007 Lewis Hamilton aims to compete in tomorrow’s European Grand Prix despite crashing at over 200kph as a car failure pitched the Brit into the tyre barriers at the Nurburgring Circuit. Hamilton crashed during Q3 of today’s qualifying session, and assuming he is fit enough, will start the race from tenth position for the race. Having been checked over in the circuit’s medical centre, the Brit has been flown by helicopter to hospital for further checks.

“I’m absolutely fine and we will see later if I am able to race tomorrow. "Everyone makes mistakes, and I'm only human - these things happen," said the 22-year-old.

• Such is the improved safety of cars and circuits in formula 1 that there hasn’t been a driver fatality in a race since three times World Champion, Ayrton Senna was killed during the San Marino GP at Imola on 1st May 1994.

Vision Zero philosophy operating successfully, - saving lives and preventing serious injury

road accident definition

an unintentional energy exchange, which occurs when energy of any type reaches a susceptible structure in amounts, and at rates, in excess of those that can be tolerated without damage.

• 2,900+ fatalities on UK roads in 2007 • More than 15% of fatalities and serious injuries involve vehicles colliding with road side objects.

100 years ago

30 years ago

today

Injury causation and prevention • Causation massive deceleration forces intrusion into vehicles ejection from vehicles unrestrained occupants

• Prevention engineer “long, slow crashes” provide plenty of space move objects protect occupants with passive devices or restraint systems

Standards & Advice

EN 12767:2007

EN 12767 The standard has different performance classes for each property to enable purchasers in different Member States to select a performance class appropriate to the conditions in that State. The performance class designations to be used when specifying products consist of three elements; Impact speed: Energy absorption category: Occupant safety level. Purchasers should be aware of this and ensure that they specify their requirements correctly, following the recommendations of this NA.

Energy absorption category Category NE supports are generally designed to fail and detach at the base. Lighting columns or tall signs or signals will normally fall back over the impacting vehicle, falling approximately in the original position. Smaller traffic signs may fall a short distance from the foundation, usually in the direction of travel, and may be passed over by the impacting vehicle. Category LE supports are generally designed to yield in front of and under the impacting vehicle, before shearing or detaching towards the end of the impact event. Category HE supports are generally designed to yield in front of and under the impacting vehicle, and usually wrap around the vehicle. They may straighten out again as the impact event proceeds.

Category NE supports provide a lower risk of injury to vehicle occupants than HE or LE, and are the most appropriate choice on non-built up roads with insignificant volumes of non-motorised users (NMUs). Category LE and HE supports reduce the risk of secondary incidents and collision with NMUs, as the vehicle exit speed is lower, and thus have advantages on built-up roads where there is a significant volume of NMUs.

TA 89/04 & TA 89/05

The UK Annexe to EN 12767:2007

Table NA.1 Recommended speed classes Situation of use

Speed class km/h

Non-built up roads(1)

100

Locations where road layout imposes speed restriction (2)

70

Built up roads

70

(1) Roads with a speed limit greater than 40 mph (2) Examples are some roundabouts and junctions and roads with 50 mph speed limit

Table NA.2 Recommended energy absorption category Traffic sign and traffic signal supports Situation of use

Energy absorption

Non-built up roads(1)

NE

Locations with significant volume of NMUs (2)

LE (3)

Locations where major risk of items falling on other c/way

LE (3)

Built up roads LE (3) (1) Roads with a speed limit greater than 40 mph (2) Non-motorised users (3) Category NE can be accepted where the standard steel posts defined as deemed to comply in Annex F are used, or for sign supports where suitable Category LE products are currently not available.

Table NA 4 Summary of performance class recommendations Situation

Non-built up allpurpose roads(2) and motorways

Location

Type of support structure Sign or signal support (1)

Unharmful support structures

Generally in verges of motorways, dual carriageways and single carriageway roads

100:NE:3

100:NE:4

With significant volume of NMUs (3)

Generally in verges

100:LE:3 (5)

100:NE:4

Where road layout imposes speed restriction

70:LE:3(5)

100:NE:4 or 70:NE:4

Generally in verges

100:LE:3(5)

100:NE:4 or 70:NE:4

Where road layout imposes speed restriction

70:LE:3(5)

100:NE:4 or 70:NE:4

70:LE:3(5)

100:NE:4 or 70:NE:4

(4)

Where major risk of items falling on other carriageways

(4)

Built up roads

All locations

(1)Can include other items such as variable message sign and speed camera supports (2)Roads with a speed limit greater than 40 mph (3)Non-motorised users (4)Examples are some roundabouts and junctions and roads with 50 mph speed limits (5)Category NE can be accepted where the standard steel posts defined as deemed to comply in Annex F are used, or for sign supports where suitable Category LE products are currently not available.

It is the responsibility of the purchaser to specify which performance class is required. If a class is not given but the requirement to meet EN 12767 is specified, then manufacturers may supply the lowest level in the standard, which is Class 0, Nonperformance determined. This may not be suitable, as the products will not have been tested to determine that they are passively safe.

The decision to specify products complying with a performance class from BS EN 12767: 2006 in a particular situation, rather than class 0, is a matter for the road authority.

TPR handbook A Design Handbook has been published by TEC and The Passive Revolution The Handbook covers standards, use of passively safe products such as signposts, lighting columns, traffic lights, EN 1317 barriers, parapets and crash cushions Distributed free by the Passive Revolution at events in the UK and Europe

More practical advice from TPR

www.thepassiverevolution.co.uk • • • • • • • •

Links to Current Standards UK and European pages Links to suppliers and manufacturers News items Published articles/Media Clips Video clips & EN 12767 Crash tests clips Photo Galleries Table of “Approved” Products

Seminars

Awards

Articles

TRAFFEX 2009

Crash Demonstrations

2005 - 100 km/h - 140mm diameter steel signpost

2006 - 100 km/h - 140mm diameter steel signpost

2007 - 100km/hr – Steel signpost

2007 - 100km/hr – Passive signpost

2008 - 70km/hr –steel traffic signal pole

2008 - 70km/hr – Steel column

2008 - 70km/hr – Passive column

2008 - 100km/hr – ramped end & concrete

2008 - 110km/hr – HGV rear end

Working with the European Road Assessment Programme - EuroRAP

Protocols EuroRAP provides 3 protocols that can be applied to any country Risk Rate Mapping

Colour-coded maps showing the risk of death and serious injury that road-users face on different roads, with extra mapping for road authorities

Performance Tracking

Identifying whether fewer people are being killed or seriously injured on a road over time and identifying countermeasures that are most effective

Star Rating

A Star Rating showing how well a road protects road-users if a crash occurs

Star Rating (RPS) Design elements known to affect likelihood of an accident occurring Safety features known to mitigate injury severity Drive-through inspection or video capture (or both) Assesses 4 main impact types 1-4 stars awarded (combined and separate) Not a road safety audit: assesses general standard of the route, not individual sites of concern

Inspected Road Attributes Unprotected trees Unprotected Unprotected posts posts

Delineation: limited forward visibility No median separation

Junction off crest of the curve

Worn Worn markings markings

No No shoulder shoulder

Inspected Road Attributes Protected Protected posts posts & & trees trees

Wide Wide median median separation separation

Good Good lighting lighting Paved Paved shoulder shoulder

Wide Wide shoulder shoulder Wide Wide lanes lanes

Good Good overtaking overtaking provision provision

Good Good markings markings

Rumble Rumble strips strips

Star Rating Scoring System Design elements matched with known biomechanical tolerances to predict the survivability of accidents at varying speeds Risk Matrix: Median Treatment – Head On

A car occupant travelling at 120km/h is 48 times more likely to be killed or seriously injured in a head-on collision single centre lines compared to a median of >10m

European Results: Star Rating

Further information: www.eurorap.org

UK Roads & “Seeing is Believing”

UK Roads & “Seeing is Believing”

UK Roads & “Seeing is Believing”

Thank you for listening