Road Safety and Traffic

Accident Analysis
Learning Outcomes
• Define what is an accident.
• Identify different accidents per population and registered vehicles.
• Calculate accident rates for intersections and road sections.
• Identify different cost of traffic accidents.
Road Safety and Traffic Accident Analysis
• One undesirable reality that comes with development is the increase
in traffic accidents concomitant with increased motorization and
infrastructure. Every year, worldwide, at least one million people are
killed on the road, 70 percent of whom are from countries classified
by the World Bank as low- or middle-income.
• This apparently worse scenario among developing countries, like the
Philippines, may be explained in that priorities are geared toward
infrastructure development, improving mobility, and addressing the
need for a better public transportation system. Conscious efforts to
ensure road safety then take a back seat.
ASSESSMENT OF ROAD SAFETY

• The state of road safety of a country or a region is normally gauged by

the frequency of accident occurrence.
• Key indicators are the number of accidents (fatal, injured, or property
damage) and the rates of accidents. For comparison studies, the rates
are normally used instead of the actual numbers.
Accident per Population

• One measure of accident rate is per 100,000 population. For instance,

if a town, city, or region has N accident occurrences in one year and
has a population P, then
Ap = N/p x 100,000
Accident per Population
Situation no. 1
A town has a population of 350,000 in 2005. In the same year, the
number of accidents was 620. Determine the accident rate.
Solution:
Accident per Registered Vehicles

• Another measure of accident rate is per 10,000 registered vehicles.

Again, if there are N accidents in one year and the number of
registered vehicles for the same year is V, then
Av = N/V x 10,000
Accident per Registered Vehicles

Situation no. 2
The town in example 7.1 has 122,400 registered vehicles in 2005.
Determine the accident rate per registered vehicles.

Solution:
Accident Definition
• The UN Organization (Geneva) defines traffic death as that which occurs
within thirty days of the event, i.e., a road accident victim who died within
thirty days of the incident is still considered a casually of the accident.
• The Philippines defines fatality as “death at the scene”. Serious injury and
slight injury are defined based on the extent of injury sustained and the
length of time required by the injured to recover. However, there is no
exact definition of the seriousness of the injury.
• Property damage-only accidents involve vehicles colliding with publicity or
privately owned structures, equipment, and facilities located by the road.
It also includes collision of vehicles with other vehicles without causing
physical injury to the driver, passenger, or any pedestrian.
Road Accident Reporting

• There are no specific steps in accident reporting in the country. In

many cases, the accidents
• reported to hospitals are referred to medico-legal department of the
hospital, with the local policeman from the accident site in
attendance. In the absence of local police, the reporting of an
accident from the hospital to the police headquarters and to the PNP
is seldom done.
Road Accident Reporting
• In Metro Manila, the Traffic Enforcement Unit is composed of three to five investigators
working round the clock by shifts. Each accident case has a corresponding investigator from
each reporting police station. It is a common practice for each investigator to be responsible
for keeping the records of cases he or she has investigated, regardless of the type of
accident.
• The TMG used to handle all cases of traffic accidents within Metro Manila, but when the
Traffic Enforcement Group (TEG) was formed, both groups became involved in reporting
and record keeping of traffic accidents. Although the TEG is supposed to be responsible for
reporting traffic accidents while TMG takes care of anticarnapping and antihijacking
campaigns, the functions of the two are still unclear as far as traffic accident reporting is
concerned.
• The hospitals are usually the first ones to get involved within traffic accident victims. The
police are then informed by a call from the hospital. At present, the practice of record
keeping in hospitals varies considerably. Most of the hospitals do this manually. The
Department of Health intends to promote an integrated hospital information system
designed to computerized medical records.
 Road Accident Reporting
• Several government projects on road safety are funded by international organizations. One relevant
project is the DPWH Sixth Road Project (CO8 Road Infrastructure Safety Project).
• One of the outputs of this Asian Development Bank (ADB) funded project is the development of a
handbook on accident cost estimation and updating. Another ADV-funded project implemented through
the Metro Manila Development Authority and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources
(DENR), the “Metro Manila Air Quality Improvement Project”, has a major component on road safety.
• It is interesting to note that both projects have developed traffic accident database and analysis system.
The Traffic Accident Reporting and Analysis System or TARAS is housed at the DPWH.
• The TARAS is composed of computer software and associated procedures for recording and analyzing
road accidents in the Philippines. On the other hand, the Metro Manila Accident Reporting and Analysis
System or MMARAS is the computer software being used by the MMDA. The MMARAS is used for
recording and analyzing road accidents in Metro Manila. Although the proponents of the two projects
may assert that is is best to have two separate systems as they have different objectives to meet, in the
end, what matters most is whether the two systems can give the overall picture of traffic safety in the
Philippines.
• In the case of the MMARAS, only fatal and serious injury accidents are considered for reporting and
analysis. This leaves the traffic investigation reports on minor injury accidents and property-damage-only
accidents on the shelves of the different police districts in Metro Manila.
 Present Situation
• Most developed countries have been successful in reducing accident
rates, but the rates
• remain unchecked in many developing countries. Relative to other
countries, the Philippine accident rate of about 6.0 fatalities per 10,000
vehicles appears to show a better image of road safety condition. answers
to these questions reflects how little priority is given to road safety.
• When the Philippine situation is compared with that of other ASEAN
countries, again statistics may be deceiving and tend to make us
complacent about our situation. In reality, there is much discrepancy
between statistics and the actual situation.
Key Socioeconomic Indicators

• Three key socioeconomic indicators are used to assess a country’s

road safety condition:
A. Population
B. Gross domestic product (GDP)
C. Vehicle registration
Key Socioeconomic Indicators
Number of fatalities on the road as reported by the PNP and the health sector
Casualties by age group
Vulnerable user groups
Accidents at Intersection

• As observed in other countries, intersections or junctions are also

normally the points of
• conflict in the Philippine transportation system. Available data show
that about one-third of accidents occurred at intersection (figure 7.5).
However, local studies on the occurrence of accidents at intersections
are very scarce, with hardly any reference on the subject.
Accidents at Intersection

Figure 7.5
Distribution of accidents by location (2000)
Accident Rate for Intersections
• When analyzing traffic accidents at intersections, the total entering
traffic volume usually in AADT is considered. Equation 7.3 is used to
compute the accident rate per million entering vehicles (mev). The
factor of 1,000,000 is applied for convenience to obtain values of Ai
within two to three digits.

N – total number of accidents in time T

T – time frame of analysis, year
V – AADT or annual average daily traffic
Accident Rate for Intersections
Situation no. 3
The T-intersection has 1,746 collision incidents over the last three
years. The annual daily traffic is shown in the figure below.

Determine the accident rate of the intersection.

Accident Rate for Intersections
Situation no. 3
The T-intersection has 1,746 collision incidents over the last three
years. The annual daily traffic is shown in the figure below.
Determine the accident rate of the intersection.

Solution:
Accidents Rates for Road Sections
Accidents Rates for Road Sections

Situation no. 4
A stretch of four-lane, two-way highway 5.0 km long has a traffic
volume of 35,000 vehicles per day. If for the last three years, the total
number of accidents recorded was 1,900, determine the accident rate
per 100 mvk.
Accidents Rates for Road Sections

Situation no. 4
A stretch of four-lane, two-way highway 5.0 km long has a traffic
volume of 35,000 vehicles per day. If for the last three years, the total
number of accidents recorded was 1,900, determine the accident rate
per 100 mvk.

Solution:
Agencies and Institutions Involved in Road Safety
• The Department of Public Works and Highways is primarily concerned
with the planning, design, and operation of roads and roadside
facilities. In pursuing those functions, the DPWH requires data on
road-related factors of an accident like location of occurrences, road
condition of locations, and presence of road safety facilities. The on-
going 6th ADB Road Project (Road Safety Component) being carried
out by the DPWH covers major activities that are expected to boost
road safety programs in the country.
Agencies and Institutions Involved in Road Safety
• The Department of Transportation and Communications is the
primary government agency dealing with road transport industry,
particularly the planning and policy aspects. The DOTC heads the
National Road Safety Committee. NRSC is supposed to ensure the
timely and responsive implementation of policies and programs on
transportation safety. As far as road safety is concerned, a plan
covering six aspects (6Es) has been developed; education,
engineering, enforcement, enactment of laws, economics, and
emergency services.
Agencies and Institutions Involved in Road Safety

• The Philippine National Police-Traffic Management Group and the

local police force have emerged as the main traffic law enforcement
units of the government. The TMG, besides being involved in safety
education programs, is responsible for the safekeeping of accident
data.
Agencies and Institutions Involved in Road Safety
• The Land Transportation Office is in charge of driver licensing, registration of motor
vehicles, and the enforcement of transportation and traffic laws. Recently, when
the drug test for drivers became mandatory, the LTO was tasked to accredit drug
testing laboratories all over the country, in line with the agency’s target that no
driver’s license shall be issued to drug addicts or drug dependents.
• The LTO carries out a driver education program with the assistance of Technical
Skills Development Authority (TESDA) and in coordination with the Civil Service
Commission to educate drivers on traffic rules and regulations, as well as to
develop proper skills and behavior while driving. In the form of an outreach
program, the LTO visits schools, bus companies, private and public organizations to
conduct lectures to enhance road safety awareness. The on-going countrywide
Motor Vehicle Inspection System/Smoke Emission Testing Project tests motor
vehicles for emission and safety standards. Target results of the program are
improved air quality, reduced accidents, reduced fuel consumption, and reduced
air-quality-related health problems.
Agencies and Institutions Involved in Road Safety

• The Department of Health, the principal health agency in the

Philippines, is responsible for ensuring every Filipino’s access to basic
public health services through the provision of quality health care and
regulation of providers of health goods and services. Given the
mandate, the DOH is both a stakeholder in the health sector and a
policy and regulatory body for health. As a major player, the DOH is a
technical resource, a catalyser for health policy, and a political
sponsor and advocate for health issues on behalf of the health sector.
Agencies and Institutions Involved in Road Safety

• The Department of Education (DepEd) is the primary government

agency tasked to provide the school—age population with basic
education. It has been long proposed that traffic education be
included in the high school curriculum, but so far, a bill has yet to be
discussed in the legislature.
INITIATIVES ON ROAD SFETY

• 7.5.2 Motor Vehicle Inspection System by the LTO

Inspection of motor vehicle is a prerequisite to vehicle registration,
with the objective of ensuring that the vehicle is in good condition.
Structural and safety components of the vehicle ae officially
examined.
INITIATIVES ON ROAD SFETY

• The seat Belt Law, passed in year 2000, requires installation of and
buckling up of seatbelts on front seats only of private vehicles. No
special requirements are stipulated for children. For public utility
jeepneys, only the driver and the passengers seated in seats facing
forward are required to wear seatbelts. In the case of public utility
buses, only the driver and the passenger seated immediately behind
the driver, and the passengers seated immediately behind the door of
the bus are required to wear seatbelts.
INITIATIVES ON ROAD SFETY

• 7.5.4 Banning the Use of Cellular Phones and Handset Radios while
Operating or Driving a Motor Vehicle (RA 7924)
The se of cellular phones while driving has been banned within Metro
Manila since March 1997 because of its potential hazards to motorists.
Though still small in number, accidents that were primarily attributed to
using cellular phone while driving have occurred.
INITIATIVES ON ROAD SFETY

• 7.5.5 Other Initiatives

As mentioned earlier, the UNICEF Philippines conducted a study on
the reduction of incidence of childhood death and disability resulting
from preventable injuries on 2003. This study was similar to the first
project on Child Injury Prevention supported by the UNICEF in
Vietnam. The results of the study have confirmed the seriousness of
the country’s problem regarding road safety and unreliability of data
as provided by the police.
Severity Ratio
• Model development is based on Fatal + Non-Fatal crashes.
Severity Ratio
Situation no. 5
Solve for SR using the ff. traffic data.
YEAR PROPERTY INJURY FATAL
DAMAGE
2017 205 56 2
2018 178 48 3
2019 152 41 3
2020 190 60 5
2021 310 88 8
Severity Ratio
Situation no. 5
Solve for SR using the ff. traffic data.
YEAR PROPERTY INJURY FATAL
DAMAGE
2017 205 56 2
2018 178 48 3
2019 152 41 3
2020 190 60 5
2021 236 88 8
TOTAL 961 293 21

SR = 293 + 21 / 961 + 293 + 21 = 0.246

Severity Ratio
Assignment no. 4
Situation no. 2
YEAR PROPERTY INJURY FATAL
DAMAGE
2017 205 56 2
2018 178 48 3
2019 152 41 3
2020 190 60 5
2021 236 88 X
END SLIDE