Recent Situation of Winter Road Management and Traffic Accidents in Hokkaido

Abstract

The 1990s may be described as the decade of conversion from studded to nonstudded tires (called “studless tires” in Japan). By 1993, studded tires had disappeared from Japan. Since a ban on the use of these tires went into effect, environmental benefits have been realized, such as a reduction in the amount of suspended particulate matter from tire-abraded roads. However, the roughness of snow- or ice-covered roads rapidly declined, and extremely slippery roads became common throughout Hokkaido. To address this problem, road administrators expanded measures for treating snow- or ice-covered roads, and the amount of antifreezing agents and abrasives applied to roadways has increased to several tens of times the amount applied a decade ago. Changes such as decreased traffic capacity and increased traffic accidents in winter have also been observed. The influences of the studded tire ban on the environment, changes in road surface management, changes in winter traffic characteristics, and trends in traffic accidents in the decade since the ban are summarized. Issues for future resolution are identified.