"Road traffic safety refers to the methods and measures used to prevent road users from being killed or seriously injured."
How to stay safe while using transportation, such as wearing a seatbelt, following traffic signals, and avoiding distracted driving.
Vehicle Safety: This includes topics such as wearing seatbelts, ensuring the vehicle is regularly maintained, and avoiding distractions while driving.
Roadway Safety: This topic covers safe driving practices such as obeying traffic laws, using turn signals, monitoring blind spots, and maintaining a safe following distance.
Pedestrian Safety: This topic focuses on how to safely navigate traffic as a pedestrian, including looking both ways before crossing and using designated crosswalks.
Bicycle Safety: This topic covers how to safely ride a bicycle on roadways, including wearing a helmet, following traffic laws, and using hand signals.
Public Transportation Safety: This includes learning how to safely navigate public transportation systems such as buses and trains, including where and how to stand safely while riding.
Emergency Preparedness: This topic covers how to prepare for and respond to emergencies while using transportation, including knowing the location of emergency exits and how to evacuate in case of an emergency.
Loading and Unloading Safety: This topic focuses on how to safely load and unload items from vehicles, including proper lifting techniques and securing items to prevent them from shifting during transport.
Hazardous Materials: This topic covers how to safely transport and handle hazardous materials, including proper labeling and handling procedures.
Defensive Driving: This topic covers how to anticipate and avoid potential hazards while driving, including maintaining a safe speed and staying alert while driving.
Regulatory Compliance: This covers the legal requirements for transportation safety, including inspections and regulations for commercial drivers and vehicles.
Seatbelt Safety: This step involves buckling up your seatbelt while traveling in a vehicle, including cars, buses, and trains. It minimizes the risk of injury in case of a collision or any untoward incident.
Speed Limits: Every vehicle has a speed limit beyond which it's dangerous to drive. Stick to the speed limit signs to avoid accidents.
Follow Traffic Rules: Traffic rules are set for everyone's safety. A driver must follow them, including traffic signals, stop signs, and speed limit signs.
Walking Safety: Walking is an important part of transportation. A pedestrian must use sidewalks, pedestrian crossings (zebra crossing), or pavements to minimize the risk of accidents.
Traffic Awareness: Observe your surroundings while driving or walking. Notice the flow of traffic, cyclist, pedestrians, and other vehicles to make safe decisions.
Road Weather Safety: Adverse weather conditions like snow, rain, fog, and ice affect road surfaces, visibility, and driving conditions. Adjust your driving speed accordingly.
Vehicle Safety Checks: Regular vehicle checks are crucial for safe transportation. Check brakes, tires, engine oil levels, and other components of your vehicle.
Defensive Driving: Predicting and identifying potential hazards and taking precautions to avoid severe accidents is known as defensive driving.
Distracted Driving: Do not indulge in distraction while driving, such as texting or talking on the phone. It increases the risk of accidents.
DUI Awareness: Driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol affects the driver's ability to make safe decisions. It's one of the significant causes of accidents.
Driver Fatigue: Sleepiness can affect driving habits, reflexes, and decision-making abilities. Avoid driving when fatigued.
Child Safety: Safety precautions must also be taken for young children, such as using appropriate child restraints and car seats.
Emergency Preparedness: Being prepared for emergencies while traveling is essential. Familiarize yourself with emergency exits and protocols.
Transportation Security: Screenings and security checks at airports, ports, and other transportation hubs. Stay alert and report any suspicious activity.
Vehicle Maintainence: Conduct periodic maintenance and servicing of the vehicle to keep it in tip-top condition. It reduces the risk of breakdowns and accidents.
"Typical road users include pedestrians, cyclists, motorists, vehicle passengers, horse riders, and passengers of on-road public transport (mainly buses and trams)."
"The basic strategy of a Safe System approach is to ensure that in the event of a crash, the impact energies remain below the threshold likely to produce either death or serious injury."
"This threshold will vary from crash scenario to crash scenario, depending upon the level of protection offered to the road users involved."
"For example, the chances of survival for an unprotected pedestrian hit by a vehicle diminish rapidly at speeds greater than 30 km/h, whereas for a properly restrained motor vehicle occupant, the critical impact speed is 50 km/h (for side impact crashes) and 70 km/h (for head-on crashes)."
"As sustainable solutions for classes of road safety have not been identified, particularly low-traffic rural and remote roads..."
"...a hierarchy of control should be applied, similar to classifications used to improve occupational safety and health."
"At the highest level is sustainable prevention of serious injury and death crashes..."
"The second level is real-time risk reduction, which involves providing users at severe risk with a specific warning to enable them to take mitigating action."
"The third level is about reducing the crash risk which involves applying the road-design standards and guidelines (such as from AASHTO), improving driver behavior and enforcement."
"Traffic safety has been studied as a science for more than 75 years."