Unless you’re living inside a cave or on the Himalayas all these years, the notion of road safety shouldn’t be surprising for you. While many may fail to realize its importance, it has become apparent that driver awareness plays a significant role in reducing road accidents.
In this regard, the presence of safety infrastructures to aid drivers and pedestrians alike can never be overemphasized.
A Sad Picture
It would have been easier to dismiss road accidents had it not been so damaging. Though incidence of road mishaps is falling, statistics still paint a grim picture. The Australian government’s data on road safety detail how road crashes tear over $27 billion annually from the Australian economy.
And that’s just for starters. The same data point out that since 1925, road accidents have tallied over 180,000 deaths. And although the number of fatalities is falling considerably over the last four years, still there were 1,155 road deaths recorded in 2014.
While truly saddening, studies reveal that driver awareness plays a pivotal part in the reduction of these accidents.
Thwarting Accidents
A closer look at an MUARC study on 340 casualty crashes both in Victoria and New South Wales is revealing. It shows that for most of the accidents, 13.5% were caused by overindulgence of alcohol. However, what is surprising is that many of these accidents occurred when the driver’s attention is diverted – from an insect in the vehicle to something as common as falling asleep.
In such scenarios, increased protection for pedestrians can never be over-emphasised, Erections WA! notes. It is for this reason that protective measures such as thrie beams installed on roads is most helpful.
As these traffic barriers are made of steel, their long continuous presence provides a strong resistance to heavy duty vehicles – even at high speed. Added to this, their design – being made up of posts, divider, rail and guard rail – dissipate the strength of impact as well as redirect a rampaging vehicle.
Safety, for sure, starts with responsible driving. However, when drivers fail to keep their eyes on the road, as they sometimes will, safety infrastructure saves the day.
