Accident Statistics Research Articles

INFLUENCE OF SIGHT DISTANCE CHARACTERISTICS ON SAFETY OF INTERSECTIONS USING SURROGATE SAFETY MEASURES

Recent road accident statistics indicate that more than 30% of accidents occur at intersections. Whereas, total percentage of intersections present in the entire road network is less than 2%. From design point of view, one way to ensure reduction of accidents at intersections is to provide sufficient sight distance and clear sight triangles. However, it was observed that even when minimum sight distance is provided, it does not ensure non-occurrence of accidents because available sight distance at intersection changes with time. Hence there is a need to understand the effect of sight distance characteristics on safety at uncontrolled intersections. From safety studies, it was observed that crash data is highly unreliable as it is generally underreported. Hence in the present study, surrogate safety measures were used instead of crash data. To accomplish the study objectives, six uncontrolled three-legged intersections were selected. Geometric data such as sight distance was measured as per IRC SP 41 (1994) guidelines. Traffic data collection at each intersection was carried out using videography method. From the recorded videos, volume data, speed data, and Post Encroachment Time (PET) data were extracted manually. The effect of various geometric and traffic factors on the critical conflict rate was studied using correlation and regression analysis. From the models developed, it is observed that for every 1 unit increase in logarithm of major and minor road sight distance, critical conflict rate decreased by 18.14% and 33.56%, respectively. Also, it was found that, the available sight distance is far shorter than the design/minimum sight distance specified by IRC SP 41 (1994).

Трансформация угроз экономической безопасности на примере института фальшивомонетничества в России

The article analyzes federal and regional statistics of accidents related to forgery, storage and distribution of counterfeit money in Russia. The authors come to the conclusion that the registered violations are associated with the strengthening of banknote protection technologies and changes in the structure of the money supply. According to the authors, the demand for accidents associated with the counterfeiting of money was absorbed by particulars committed using information and telecommunication technologies or in the field of computer information.

Methods of Cyclist Training in Europe

The following study aims to address the issue of cyclist training methodologies. Recent European bicycle accident statistics reveal a troubling upward trend. A potential solution to mitigate such incidents involves providing cyclists with comprehensive training encompassing traffic regulations and interactions with fellow road users. We conducted a comparative analysis of the cycling education approaches and cyclist training systems in several countries, including the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, England, Slovenia, Poland, and Italy. This analysis underscored the importance of standardizing training protocols and criteria across Europe. The training model should draw inspiration from countries with well-established cycling cultures and serve as a foundation for harmonizing training practices.

Research of Porous Asphalt Concrete Application on Highway Sections with The Increased Aquaplaning Danger Level

Statistics of road accidents show that even in the summer the number of accidents directly depends on weather conditions, and one such reason is aquaplaning in some parts of the road. Therefore, solving the issue of improving the road structure in such areas, while maintaining the regulatory strength, equality and coefficient of adhesion are relevant in road construction. The research allowed developing an improved mixture of porous asphalt mixture taking into account the physical-mechanical and operational properties. The construction of the road surface was also improved with the separation of the pavement layers, where porous asphalt mixture was used as the top layer, and the basalt canvas (impregnated) between the used construction levels was used. The mathematical calculation of the road was improved taking into account the physical phenomena occurring between the car and the road surface in the presence of water. The speed limits were calculated, and the thickness of the fluid layer was taken into account as well. The authors of the article also paid attention to the influence of road roughness on the speed limit.

Improving the safety of pedestrian crossings based on the illumination degree assessment in the Central district of Chita city

The road accidents statistics proves that the main road accidents type in Russia is a collision with a pedestrian, the situation is similar in the Transbaikal Territory (44.9 %). In the darkness hours sharply increases the road traffic danger. Despite the fact that the intensity of traffic during this period is 5–10 times lower than in daylight hours, the road accidents share is 40–60 % of their total number. Therefore, the illumination degree assessment at unregulated pedestrian crossings for the subsequent recommendations development to improve its safety is an urgent problem today. For the first time we have conducted extensive instrumental research to measure the illumination level of different outdoor lighting devices types at pedestrian crossings in the Central District of the Chita city. Five streets and highways of the Chita’s Central District (Lenina St., Leningradskaya St., Butina St., Chkalova St., Babushkina St.) were studied. Measurements were carried out at 75 intersections and 450 points of illumination were measured. Measurements were carried out during 3 months of 2022. The experimental studies results on measuring the illumination degree at night on city streets are averaged and presented in tabular form. Obtained experimental data comparison with the normative values according to GOST R 55706-2013 is given. The rating of streets with division for non-dangerous with the received value over 20 lux, low-dangerous with the received value from 10 to 20 lux, dangerous with the received value more than 20 lux is made. The illumination level map of the street-road network of the central district of Chita city is constructed. Recommendations on improvement of pedestrian crossings safety for inhabitants of Chita city are given.

Nonlinear Time Series Analysis and Prediction of General Aviation Accidents Based on Multi-Timescales

General aviation accidents have complex interactions and influences within them that cannot be simply explained and predicted by linear models. This study is based on chaos theory and uses general aviation accident data to conduct research on different timescales (HM-scale, ET-scale, and EF-scale). First, time series are constructed by excluding seasonal patterns from the statistics of general aviation accidents. Secondly, the chaotic properties of multi-timescale series are determined by the 0–1 test and Lyapunov exponent. Finally, by introducing the sparrow search algorithm and tent chaotic mapping, a CSSA-LSSVM prediction model is proposed. The accident data of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) of the United States in the past 15 years is selected for case analysis. The results show that the phase diagram of the 0–1 test presents Brownian motion characteristics, and the maximum Lyapunov exponents of the three scales are all positive, proving the chaotic characteristics of multi-timescale series. The CSSA-LSSVM prediction model’s testing results illustrate its superiority in time series predicting, and when the timescale declines, the prediction error reduces gradually while the fitting effect strengthens and then decreases. This study uncovers the nonlinear chaotic features of general aviation accidents and demonstrates the significance of multi-timescale research in time series analysis and prediction.

Occupational Health and Safety in the Turkish Fisheries and Aquaculture; a Statistical Evaluation on a Neglected Industry

BackgroundFisheries and aquaculture are statistically acknowledged to be among the most dangerous occupations. Yet, industrial safety and health precautions against occupational accidents within the sector are not sufficiently implemented in many parts of the world. The present study aims to provide a quantified overview of work accident statistics in the Turkish fisheries and aquaculture industry. MethodsThis article presents an overview of reported injuries and fatalities in the Turkish fisheries and aquaculture industries from 2006 to 2020. Incident, permanent incapacity, and fatality rates were calculated, and the difference between fisheries and aquaculture was statistically examined. ResultsThe overall incident, permanent incapacity, and fatality rates were 449.4, 4.7, and 5.7 per 100,000 worker years, respectively, over the 15-year period. With these fatality rates, fisheries and aquaculture are two of the industries with the highest fatality rates among comparable industries in Turkey. Incident rates in fisheries and aquaculture indicated that aquaculture work is more dangerous and risky. The data set includes 25 fatalities and 22 permanent incapacity cases over 15 years and shows an increase in fatality rates and occupational accidents in the last 8 years. Conclusionpresent study showed that the quality of data and reporting in the Turkish fisheries and aquaculture industries including occupational illnesses, must be improved in order to be more preventative and to develop efficient safety management in the sector. Incentives for providing thorough data on occupational incidents must be enhanced to improve occupational safety awareness in Turkish fisheries and aquaculture.

Current challenges of university laboratory: Characteristics of human factors and safety management system deficiencies based on accident statistics

Introduction: In recent years, with the rapid development of university laboratory construction, frequent laboratory accidents have aroused widespread concern. There is an urgent need to improve laboratory safety management's effectiveness further, enhance laboratory accident prevention ability, and reduce the occurrence of accidents. Method: Based on the accident causation theory, this paper uses the accident analysis path of 24Model and the logical idea of WBA (Why-Because-Analysis) to statistically analyze the causative factors of 64 typical college laboratory fire and explosion accidents and find out the defects of current college laboratory management. Results: The study showed that unsafe human actions at the individual level were the most critical factors affecting laboratory safety management, with a high frequency of violations of experimental procedures (105 times) and managers' failure to perform their supervisory duties (98 times); low safety awareness and insufficient safety knowledge among laboratory personnel were key factors triggering unsafe actions. At the organizational level, the lack of training programs (92 times) and the lack of systematic procedures (106 times) are the weaknesses of the laboratory safety management system in general in all universities; the lack of safety culture construction is the root cause of laboratory management deficiencies. Conclusions: Based on the above statistical results, and taking into account the characteristics of university laboratories themselves, the root causes of poor safety are specifically analyzed and preventive measures are proposed in six areas to address the key causes of accidents. Practical Applications: The results of this study are essential for improving the ability to prevent accidents in flammable and explosive laboratories in universities.

Dynamic risk analysis of flammable liquid road tanker based on fuzzy Bayesian network

AbstractDue to environmental variability of combustible liquid road transportation, it is difficult to analyze risk accurately. This article proposes a method for real‐time analysis of the risk of flammable liquid road transportation using a fuzzy Bayesian network. This method combines the binary logistic regression model with the bow‐tie model to analyze the influencing factors and accident evolution. Then, a Bayesian network framework is established based on the fault tree model. In the case of limited historical accident statistics, the fuzzy set theory and Leaky Noisy‐OR theory are used to determine the prior probability and conditional probability of Bayesian network nodes, and ALOHA software is used to simulate the dangerous area of the accident to define further the safe evacuation range and emergency rescue material demand. Taking the road transportation of a tanker in Beijing as an example, the accident probability is updated in real time by monitoring the data of transportation nodes, and the change rule of risk level with internal and external conditions at different times is analyzed. The research shows that this method can dynamically describe the road transportation accidents of hazardous chemicals with the GPS data of vehicles.

Aircraft overrun warning systems capabilities and disadvantages

Currently, attention of the aviation community and authorities is being increasingly focused on flight safety in the landing phase. It is accounted for the increased frequency of incidents in the final phase of flight and significant threats associated with the consequences of these events. The statistics of aviation accidents reveals that from 1959 to 2019, 55% of aircraft crashes in the world occurred in the phases of landing and takeoff. The given crashes resulted in 51% of all fatalities on board aircraft. In most cases, causes of these aviation accidents are involved with some kind of human error. Off-design conditions at an aerodrome also have a significant adverse effect on the aviation accident potential and severity. The increasing intensity of flights, airspace congestion, strict ATC-imposed restrictions, the necessity to perform a variety of procedures and general flight crew stress in conjunction with dynamically changing external conditions can disorient a flight crew and lead to a landing with a flight envelope overrange. The search for a solution in terms of preventing aircraft overruns is actively being conducted both by aviation authorities and aircraft manufacturers and operators. Within the framework of this review, the major external and operational factors, affecting the dynamics and the nature of the aircraft roll via the runway, are analyzed, including the context of several accidents that have occurred in recent years. In addition, the article emphasizes the methods to prevent and anticipate aircraft overruns based on the principles of active protection. In particular, the article examines the main operation aspects of onboard avionics systems installed on Boeing and Airbus aircraft and highlights the focus areas of their upgrading. Special attention is paid to the influence of the pilot and the possibility of taking his actions into account to predict an outcome of landing.

Foreign practices of representing a victim of a traffic accident in criminal proceedings

A substantial increase in the quantitative indicators of traffic accident statistics in Ukraine in recent years, as well as a tendency to decrease the effectiveness of solving this type of crime due to a decrease in attention to the problem, leads to impunity for the guilty, as well as the inability of victims to protect their rights and interests. Despite the armed aggression of the Russian Federation, such basic institutions as the representation of the interests of the victims, especially in the field of crimes against traffic safety and operation of transport, must have clear legal regulation at the state level, which is precisely what determines the relevance of this study. The purpose of this study was to analyse the foreign practices of the victim representation institution both in the general context and in terms of crimes against traffic safety and transport operation, as well as standardization and improvement of the current legislation by borrowing foreign legal ideas. The basis of the methodological approach is dialectical and comparativist methods, which helped analyse the legislation of several European countries. The study analysed the legislation of the Netherlands, Germany, the USA, and Great Britain for comparative analysis and to find gaps in national legislation. The need to distinguish between the terms “representative of the victim” and “legal representative”, as well as to separate the category “advocate-representative of the victim” from the general concept of “defender in criminal proceedings” was proved. Some provisions were also presented, according to which the legally mandatory participation of a lawyer representing the victim in road traffic accident cases and the presence of certain conditions should be established. The study focuses on the issue of compensation for damage caused to the victim as a result of the accident and possible aspects of its settlement at the state level, considering the practices of the Netherlands. The results obtained during this study are an important theoretical basis for improving the legal regulation of the activity of a lawyer representing a victim of a traffic accident

A survey of fire accidents during the process of highway tunnel operation in China from 2010 to 2021: Characteristics and countermeasures

China has the largest number of highway tunnels in the world and the most rapid development in this scope. Along with the advancement of highway tunnels, fire incidents continue increasing, causing significant damages to life and property safety. The knowledge of characteristics of highway tunnel fire accidents is essential for the fire authorities to update their safety policies on tunnels and also useful for the scholars to carry out basic and applicable researches. Previous studies have been performed on fire accident statistics in highway tunnels before 2016. The dataset after 2016 are unknown. To solve this problem, the present study examined total 256 fire incidents in Chinese highway tunnels during 2010–2021 based on police-reported database. The results showed that the fire number in 2017–2021 is almost three times that in 2010–2016. The fires occur more in spring and summer. The majority of fires occur in the long and extra-long tunnels (80%), in the one-way tunnels (90%), in the curved tunnels (70%), in the interior zone of tunnels (67.2%) and in the low altitude areas (60%). The top two burning vehicle types are heavy goods vehicles (HGVs, 38.1%) and passenger cars (37.2%). A total of 81.2% of fatalities in highway tunnel fires are associated with HGVs. The head of vehicle (41.8%), tire (25.3%) and goods (15.3%) are the top three causes of fire. Despite the fact that 92.7% of cases are single fire category while spread fire category only accounts for 7.3%, the spread fire has a more than 7 times higher casualty rate than the single fire. Based on the results, some useful fire safety measures for highway tunnels are proposed. It is hoped that this work could provide some data supports and references for tunnel fire safety and relative policy-making.

A new lane change index for lane change conflicts at weaving segments

Objective Surrogate safety measures provide information about the safety of traffic facilities without waiting for crashes to occur. Most studies related to surrogate safety measures were performed at intersections. Traffic accident statistics show that sideswipe crashes have a considerable percentage of all crashes. Sideswipe crashes arising from lane-change conflicts are highly probable at weaving segments. This study focuses on lane-change conflicts at weaving segments and proposes a new index. Methods Considering the interactions between the subject vehicle and the surrounding vehicles, two new surrogate safety measures, time- and position-based, are recommended. Then, applying a fault tree analysis, these two measures are converted to a lane change risk index to estimate the crash severity. The proposed index is specific to weaving segments. Data from five weaving segments were extracted using deep learning detection and tracking algorithms. Results The results based on the relationship between the proposed indexes and speed showed that the probability and severity of a crash increased as the speed increased. The longer weaving length resulted in smaller values in the time-based index. Conclusions The weaving length is critical because it becomes difficult to perform a lane change if the length is too short. The proposed time and position-based indexes combine the effect of weaving length, stopping distance index, time to collision, and brake time. It is believed that the proposed lane change risk index can be used to detect the safety level of weaving segments.

Analysis of moose motion trajectory after bullet train-moose collisions

Collisions between trains and moose that cross a track are common occurrences according to rail accident statistics. A moose lying on a track after a crash may increase the risk of train derailment. In addition, a moose thrown into the air during a collision may also hit and damage the pantograph, which prevents a train from running. This paper developed a finite element (FE) model of moose and is aimed at investigating the train crash safety and moose motion trajectory in train-moose collisions for different moose crossing scenarios using the FE method. Material biomechanics tests were conducted to obtain the mechanical property parameters of moose. Drop hammer impact tests were performed to validate the constitutive models of different moose segments. The whole moose FE model was verified against previous vehicle-moose crash tests. The numerical impact scenes of moose crossing the rail at different collision positions were established in LS-DYNA. The results showed that the impact force depends on the contact area between the train and the moose. A larger contact area corresponded to a larger impact force. The moose would be pushed away by the V-shaped locomotive and would not cause a derailment, and the height of the moose thrown into the air cannot reach the height of the pantograph, which would prevent damage to the pantograph of a bullet train.

Analysis on car driver’s speed at Federal Route FT050

Johor is one of the states in Malaysia that records high accident statistics, especially on Federal Route FT050, Batu Pahat-Ayer Hitam. One of the elements causing an accident is the attitude of a driver who drives too fast and ignores the warning and speed limit signs. The study aimed to determine whether the warning signboard’s impact on driving speed at the before- and after-study locations. The GPS DG 200 was used to record the speed data of 50 trips at Batu Pahat to Ayer Hitam. Descriptive and inferential statistics (paired t-test) were used to determine whether or not a driver reduced their speed when approaching an accident-prone area. The results indicate that the warning sign is significant because drivers reduce their speed after passing a warning signboard.

Descriptive and temporal trend analysis of LER/DORT Cases in Brazil from 2012 to 2021

The Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI) or Work-related Musculoskeletal Disorders (WMSDs) are labor misfortunes that affect thousands of workers in Brazil, capable of causing irreversible sequelae, depending on the severity of the accident and the conditions in which the work is performed. In this context, this research aims to conduct a quantitative descriptive study to evaluate the most incident cases of work-related musculoskeletal disorders in Brazil from 2012 to 2021. The proposed method was based on a descriptive analysis along with a linear regression model to capture the trend of major occupational ICDs over ten years. The cases of work-related musculoskeletal disorders analyzed showed a reduction throughout the period, and the most common pathologies are upper limb injuries, especially back pain, which resulted in an average of 24.7 thousand accidents per year. Thus, it is recommended to adopt more effective preventive measures in order to reduce the statistics of accidents caused by work-related musculoskeletal disorders in the country.

Assessment on concrete constitutive models for numerical simulations of vehicular collisions with RC bridge piers

Accident statistics showed that vehicular collision caused serious shear damage or failure of reinforced concrete (RC) bridge piers and even resulted in overall collapse of bridge structures. For the resistance evaluation of RC components under impact loads, numerical simulations have been performed by adopting different concrete constitutive models and obtained different results, e.g., Karagozian and Case Concrete (KCC) model and Continuous Surface Cap (CSC) model widely used, as well as Kong-Fang (KF) model recently proposed. This study mainly evaluates the accuracy of the above three concrete constitutive models in numerical analyses of vehicular collisions with RC bridge piers. Firstly, basic mechanical behaviors of these models are systematically compared based on single element simulations. Then, the scope of investigation is extended to component level by simulating a drop hammer test on RC beam and a lateral impact test on RC column, and the dynamic behaviors of impacted RC components are deeply compared. Finally, these models are further compared at structure level through performing the refined numerical simulation of a real truck colliding with a prototype bridge and evaluating its global structural behaviors and damage. The results show that, (i) KF model well reflects the post-peak softening behavior, stable strain-rate effect and independence of mesh size of concrete materials under uniaxial loading conditions at different loading rates; KCC and KF models both capture the brittle to ductile transition of concrete materials with increasing confinement pressure; (ii) KF model yields a better prediction in dynamic responses and damage characteristics of impacted RC beam and column, while KCC and CSC models both overestimate the damage degree; (iii) KF model better simulates the shear failure of RC pier in the real accident and provides the reasonable structural dynamic responses, but KCC and CSC models much underestimates the damage degree of impacted bridge pier and adjacent components.

FIRE SAFETY ANALYSIS IN A TANK FARM

One of the urgent problems at oil-producing enterprises is the increase in man-made accidents and catastrophes caused by explosions of various oil and gas equipment, including tanks storing explosive, toxic petroleum products and raw materials.This article analyzes the accident statistics at oil and gas enterprises for the period 1953–2022. The main share of accidents belongs to ground tanks with storage of petroleum products. The main cause of accidents on tanks are poor-quality welds. The fire risk of the tank farm has been calculated, namely, an assessment of the individual and potential risk of the tank farm territory has been made. The calculation of forces and means for tank extinguishing has been carried out.

Characteristics of traffic accident statistics for older road users

The comparison of different age groups both with respect to the number of traffic accident victims and in relation to the risk of causing an accident is the prerequisite for adifferentiated assessment of persons likely to be a threat and the risk. For this purpose, selected accident statistics were analyzed and evaluated in the context of general population developments. It turns out that the accident risk for older drivers over 75years of age is not exceptionally high; however, the risk of dying in aroad traffic accident is more pronounced for the group of over 75-year-olds. The result varies depending on the means of transport. The findings are intended to stimulate further discussion and give indications for areas of action to increase road safety, especially for older road users.

Управление комплексной безопасностью предприятий нефтегазового комплекса России с использованием метода комплексных чисел

The use of the method of complex numbers for solving problems of managing the integrated safety system at the enterprises of the oil and gas complex of Russia is substantiated. A formalized description is presented related to the sequence of processing data taken from the statistics of accidents and fires at the enterprises under consideration. The mathematical apparatus of complex numbers was successfully used in various fields — for example, to determine the magnitude of the deviation of characteristics (current from voltage) in electrical engineering. It is possible to represent the instantaneous value of the characteristic under study on the plane through the proven connection between trigonometric functions and the exponent using the method of complex numbers. The use of this method in the integrated safety of enterprises allows to compactly state the sequence in the growth and development of conditions for the occurrence of hazardous events (accidents and fires) that cause damage (material and economic, sanitary, and irretrievable losses of the personnel and third parties). The figures allow to represent the complex value of the influence of factors causing damage from hazardous events (accidents and fires) in the form of vectors directed towards the area of primary and secondary factors and having a deviation from each other by an angle φ. This angle is used in the calculations for the equivalent determination of the impact of damage caused by hazardous events. The example is presented that proves in practice the adequacy of using the method of complex numbers for solving problems in managing the integrated safety system of enterprises in the oil and gas complex of Russia.