Safe Guarding – Potential of lateral road restraint systems on road safety capacity in the motor- and expressway network of the ASFiNAG

Run off accidents with personal injuries are the second most frequent type of accidents on the ASFiNAG road network. Road restraints are an important instrument to reduce accident severity. For that reason the efficiency of these systems was analysed, in order to insure an efficient road maintenance regarding infrastructure costs and to reduce furthermore the severity of these accidents.

Short Description

Starting point / motivation

Run off road accidents are the second most frequent type of accident in the ASFiNAG road network. 50 % of all fatal accidents are run off road accidents. Road restraints systems (guardrails and median barriers) are an instrument to reduce accident severity.

The investment costs and maintenance expenditures of road restraints systems are highly depending on the containment level, the impact severity level and the operating area. For that reason the cost-benefit-ratio of such systems is very important.

Objectives

The main objective of the project was to analyse road restraints systems regarding their different containment levels, in detail:

  • Highlighting the number of accidents vehicles run off road involving injury
  • Detailed analyses of the collision with road restraint systems (in-depth accident reconstruction)
  • Positioning the accidents vehicles run off road involving injury
  • Pointing out the cost-benefit-ratio of restraint systems with different containment levels

Methods

Accidents involving personal injury were assigned to the different vehicle restraint systems and then analyzed by means of various accident parameters. Furthermore, a detailled analysis was carried out on accidents with breaches of vehicle restraint systems. By means of the reconstruction of the accidents additional parameters of the impact situations were considered.

The results were reported to the contracting authority. The results of the accidents were presented in an immediate report. After analysing accidents involving injury, which accidently occurred by breaking through road restraints and pointing out the cost-benefit-ratio all results was summarized in a final report.

Results and Conclusions

The cost-benefit analysis showed different results therefore it was not possible to deduce how the average consequential accident costs of the individual classes of restraint systems are related. Important factors could not be taken into account due to the lack of data in the evaluations.

In order to provide solid conclusion regarding the differences of the consequential accident costs, data such as run-off speed, run-off angle of single-accidents and especially secure indication of the restraint system and the restraint level would have been necessary.

Finally, it must also be taken into consideration that the installation of the systems conforming to standards has a great impact on the correct function of the restraint system.

Publications

Safe Guarding - Potential of lateral road restraint systems on road safety capacity in the motor- and expressway network of the ASFiNAG

Run off accidents with personal injuries are the second most frequent type of accidents on the ASFiNAG road network. Road Restraints are an important instrument to reduce accident severity. For that reason the efficiency of these systems was analysed, in order to insure an efficient road maintenance regarding infrastructure costs and to reduce furthermore the severity of these accidents. DI Manuel Pröll, DI Bernd Strnad, DI Dr.techn. Ernst Tomasch
Publisher: BMVIT
German, 102 Seiten

Publication Downloads

Project Partners

Project manager

DI. Manuel Pröll - KFV - Board of trustees for vehicle safety

Projekt partner

Dr. Ernst Tomasch - Technical University of Graz – Institute for vehicle safety (Member of Frank Stronach Institute)

Contact Address

KFV – Board of trustees for vehicle safety
DI. Manuel Pröll
Tel.: +43 (0) 5-77077-1235
E-Mail: manuel.proell@kfv.at