Human factors issues A discussion on selected topics Rob Methorst September 27, 2007

Human factors issues

A discussion on selected topicsRob MethorstSeptember 27, 2007

Rijkswaterstaat Centre for Transport and Navigation

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Outline

IntroductionSystems approach to Vulnerable Road UsersSafety Culture in Hazardous Goods TransportSustainable Road Safety – an update


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Systems approach to Vulnerable Road Users

Issue and reasonVRU accidents do not follow trendsNeglected issue in researchAgeing of the population: expected mobility restraints and higher risksHidden single accidents (~70% of VRU victims (= 40% of all travel victims ER+))

Activities: 2003 report Vulnerable Road Userspolicy development Vulnerable Road Users, particularly re. bicyclistCOST 358 Pedestrians’ Quality Needs

Focus on mobility needs, including safety

6 Main elements


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Vulnerable Road Users – Pizza model

Individual road user

Unit / Group

Vehicle

Phisical environment

Nearby humans

Transport concepts

Norms

Networks

Travel and transportation needs

Values

Social sector

Land use

Internal

External

Human Techniquek


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Vulnerable Road Users - TRIPOD

The developers’ (Prof. Wagenaar) dog had only 3 legs and was called ‘Driepoot’(English = Tripod)

Travel

decisions

Latent Accident causes

Unsafe

acts

Disturbance

of freedom of

action

freedom

Accident Consequences

Active safety

provisions

Passive safety

provisions


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Vulnerable Road Users - perspectives

1. Functional perspective: usage value, what is being offered = intrinsic quality supply, looking at the system from the ‘head’

2. Perception perspective: what is being requested = subjective quality demand, looking at the system from the ‘heart’, including attitudes towards and of pedestrians.

3. Durability and Future Prospects: whilst # 1 and # 2 are static quality descriptions, # 3 refers to a dynamic perspective. Durability is, like user value and perception value, a relative value and depends on current qualities, future social values and future use of the physical environment and transport system.


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Vulnerable road users – Hierarchy of needs

Health / Mobility

Comfort

Convenience

Reliability

Safety

Satisfyers Attrac-

tive

Dissatisfyers

Preconditions


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Vulnerable Road Users – Universal Design

Children, elderly,

handicapped

Undergo extreme risks

Highly capable, risk

taking, agressive

drivers

Set high risks Ta

sk c

om

pe

ten

ce

Number of people

Normal task competence, normal risks


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Vulnerable Road Users – Cascade approach

Strategic level

focus on: Preconditions

travel needs, land use structure, laws and rules, administration social

system Tactical level

focus on: Latent accident causes

route characteristics, road design, road environment, road management, speed

management, vehicles, time-space, knowledge, campaigns

Operational level

Focus on: Traffic behaviour

individual road users’ behaviour (law enforcement, communication)


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Vulnerable Road Users - Discussion

What are ideas regarding making the principles operational?

What views and experiences are there in the USA regarding systems approach?


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Safety Culture in Hazardous Goods Transport

Issue: feasibility of implementation of Safety Care Systems in the Hazardous Goods Transport industry.

Reason: pursuit of continuous improvement of safety as part of the Dutch policy note on HGT; catastrophic nature of accidents

Current situation: divers market situation; overall relatively safe

Pre-conditioning for measures not yet favourable

Policy scenarios:1. Education, communication and enforcement2. Using market mechanisms


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Safety Culture in HGT – divers market

The market:International characterMany different players:

shippers (interests, imago)large, medium sized and small transport firms (cost control, options for implementing SC)mixed and specialised transporters‘rogue’ drivers and firms from the formal East BlockCharters

Many different products and clientsindustrial chemicalsGassesFuel distributionAmmunition and fireworksWaste and refuse transport

Specialised transport vehicles and containerization


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Safety Culture in HGT – current situation

Hardly any serious accidents, but clearly a public fear - political item.Hazardous Goods Traffic is very divers and relatively safe. Main distinction:

long distance bulk transport, medium and large firms; good safety recordDistribution = small firms; questionable safety record

Chemical industry (mainly petrochemicals) regulate transport safetyDistribution market parties are not interested in implementing Safety Culture


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Safety Culture in HGT - trends

Trends in Europe and NL:

InternationalisationCommon Market-effect; intake of new EU states and other former East European statesOutsourcing to cheap foreign drivers and small companies

ContainerisationDevelopment of strong containers for fluids and gasses Less special demand on driver/transporter skills and education

FragmentationOutsourcing transport by shippersOutsourcing transport to former employees


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Safety Culture in HGT – towards implementation

Pre-conditioning for measuresVehicle requirementsLicense systemLiability transfer: insurance resolutive conditions

Policy scenarios:1. ‘there is something for everybody’: problem awareness; analysis

& quick wins; tailored solutions; building on current safety care; communition and education.

2. Market scenario: market mechanism; incentives; flanking policy; bonus/malus; integrated


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Safety Culture - Discussion

Small companies inherently more unsafe?

Is outsourcing controllable?

What real options are there to implement Safety Management?


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Sustainable Road Safety – an update

Reason: ambitious targets; limitation of traditional approaches re.

achievements

Man is measure of thingsPrevention is better than a curative approachRoad classificationIntegrated policiesSafety principles

See website: www.sustainablesafety.nl


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Sustainable Road Safety – human centred

Man is measure of things:

environment (road, vehicle) should conform to what humans are capable of and provide protectionhumans should be properly instructed to prepare them for safe behaviourHumans should eventually be supervised to see whether they are safe road users


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Sustainable Road Safety: focus on prevention

Primary preventive approach:

System approach, but focussed on safetyPrevention of latent errors that can lead to dangerous behaviour and ultimately crashesApplication of 5 safety principles ( 2 new)Decentralisation of responsibilities and implementationSupervision and inspection


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Sustainable Safety - principles

1. Functionality of roadsRoads should either flow (flow roads) or provide access (access roads) and are connected by distributor roads

2. Homogeneity of masses and/or speed and directionVehicles that differ too much in mass or speed and that use the same space should be physically separated from each other

3. Predictability/ recognizabilityLayout of road and predictability of road course and road behaviour; self explaining roads, vehicles and human behaviour

4. ForgivingnessAccidents should not lead to (severe) injury of death

5. State awarenesscapability or possibility of road users estimating own task competency correctly; every road users should know what his skills are and act accordingly


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Sustainable Safety – effects and lessons

Since introduction many improvementsRoad classificationTraffic Calming: > 50% of urban roads are 30 km/hRoundabouts on distributor roadsMoped from cycle paths to carriage wayShared responsibility National – Regional – Local authoritiesEnhanced law enforcement: speeds, DUI, safety belt, bicycle lightsImpulse to traffic safety education

Too little focus on non-infrastructural aspects of the visionLow cost implementation limits effectiveness


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Sustainable Safety – issues

Basic components:InfrastructureVehiclesEducationLegislation and law enforcement

Special issues:Speed managementDrink-and-drug drivingCyclists and pedestriansMotorized two-wheelersHeavy Goods Vehicles


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Sustainable Safety – Light Rail example

Light rail: a come-back in urban areas in EURisk:

Level crossingsRelatively large massSilent vehiclesEvasive actions by light rail no optionRelatively low risk levels for cars, but VRU meet high fatality risk levels (bike 30x, pedestrian 40x)

Safety requirements:1. Preferably different levels crossing2. If not possible:

distributor road crossing only fully guardedProperty access roads: guarded

3. If not possible: Light Rail speeds less than 30 km/h at level crossings


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Sustainable Safety - Discussion

Second generation policies: a bridge too far?

tackling current problems versus prevention: can it all be done?

making safety principles operational?

preconditions for success?

Documents

Human factors issues A discussion on selected topics Rob Methorst September 27, 2007