Bad Road Research Articles

A coordinated control of hydraulic hub-motor auxiliary system for heavy truck

To solve the contradiction between the trafficability and the power of traditional heavy trucks, the study proposes a coordinated control of hydraulic hub-motor auxiliary system for heavy truck to make full use of the coefficient of ground aadhesion and engine power. With hydraulic hub-motor auxiliary system (HHMAS) in the non-drive front wheels, the front wheels drive the truck on bad roads to ensure the trucks tractive capacity and exit on good roads to achieve better transmission efficiency. Based on the HHMAS, a wheel speed coordinated control strategy that considers slip efficiency to make system work effectively is designed. The pump displacement composite control method in the real vehicle is tested, the steady-state error is basically within 0.03. Experimental results show that HHMAS has a good effect on the control strategy presented. Hence, the study on HHMAS is a valuable to hydraulic hybrid application.

The benefits of remoteness – digital mobility data, regional road infrastructure, and COVID-19 infections

Abstract We investigate the regional distribution of the COVID-19 outbreak in Germany. We use a novel digital mobility dataset, that traces the undertaken trips on Easter Sunday 2020 and instrument them with regional accessibility as measured by the regional road infrastructure of Germany’s 401 NUTS III regions. We identify a robust negative association between the number of infected cases per capita and average travel time on roads to the next major urban center. What has been a hinderance for economic performance in good economic times, appears to be a benevolent factor in the COVID-19 pandemic: bad road infrastructure. Using road infrastructure as an instrument for mobility reductions we assess the causal effect of mobility reductions on infections. The study shows that keeping mobility of people low is a main factor to reduce infections. Aggregating over all regions, our results suggest that there would have been about 55,600 infections less on May 5th, 2020, if mobility at the onset of the disease were 10 percent lower.

A SURVEY OF DAIRY PRODUCTION PRACTICES IN THE DERIVED SAVANNAH OF OYO STATE SOUTH WESTERN NIGERIA

The study was conducted to find out dairy production practices among Agro-pastoral Fulani women in the derived Savannah of Oyo State, Southwestern Nigeria. Data were collected, using structured questionnaire from 120 Fulani women in three Local Government areas namely: 0yo West, Atiba and Ogbomosho North respectively. The study revealed that the main dairying activities are milking of cattle, processing and marketing of dairy products. The most preferred dairy products are wara (local cheese), ghee and butter. Marketing was done exclusively by self or in combination with intermediaries ("middlemen"). Main reasons for engagement in dairying activities are: Income generation, cultural and husband's wish. Constraints mostly encountered are bad roads, inadequate transport facilities and inadequate supply of raw milk from the cattle in dry season. Sources of agricultural information include; friends/neighbours, radio broadcasts, and International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) Programme, Ibadan.

Access barriers to maternal healthcare services in selected hard-to-reach areas of Zambia: a mixed methods design.

Introductionpoor access to maternal health services is a one of the major contributing factors to maternal deaths in low-resource settings, and understanding access barriers to maternal services is an important step for targeting interventions aimed at promoting institutional delivery and improving maternal health. This study explored access barriers to maternal and antenatal services in Kaputa and Ngabwe; two of Zambia´s rural and hard-to-reach districts.Methodsa concurrent mixed methods approach was therefore, undertaken to exploring three access dimensions, namely availability, affordability and acceptability, in the two districts. Structured interviews were conducted among 190 eligible women in both districts, while key informant interviews, in-depth interviews and focus group discussions were conducted for the qualitative component.Resultsthe study found that respondents were happy with facilities´ opening and closing times in both districts. By comparison, however, women in Ngabwe spent significantly more time traveling to facilities than those in Kaputa, with bad roads and transport challenges cited as factors affecting service use. The requirement to have a traditional birth attendant (TBA) accompany a woman when going to deliver from the facility, and paying these TBAs, was a notable access barrier. Generally, services seemed to be more acceptable in Kaputa than in Ngabwe, though both districts complained about long queues, being delivered by male health workers and having delivery rooms next to male wards.Conclusionbased on the indicators of access used in this study, maternal health services seemed to be more accessible in Kaputa compared to Ngabwe.

The Role of Transport System in Rural Development: A Case Study of Ehime Mbano Local Government Area of Imo State Nigeria

This study was conducted to examine the role of transport system in rural development in Ehime Mbano L.G.A of Imo State. It has been observed that untarred/seasonal roads and foot track dominates in the study area. Lack of good roads in the study area has great negative impacts on the socio-economic activities of the rural communities. The observations of the area show that transport system has been faced with numerous problems due to poor road maintenance and bad road, lack of fund to construct good roads and poor road network. A total of 500 questionnaires were administered to the respondents in the selected areas of Ehime Mbano L.G. A of Imo State. The hypothesis formulated was tested using Chi-Square techniques. The result implies that the provision of transport services in rural areas is to a large extent satisfactory. Also, the result of the findings indicates that transport system has a significant impact on rural development in Ehime Mbano Local Government Area of Imo State. The findings equally, reveal that transport system has played significant role in the development of Ehime Mbano Local Government Area of Imo State. The study concluded that there is a significant relationship between the causes of road accident on urban/rural road and the problems of transport system in Ehime Mbano Local Government Area of Imo State. The study recommended that the government and private organizations should organize public awareness programs on the dangers of inexperience driving alongside the positive role of transport system on rural development.

A study to assess knowledge, attitude, and practices regarding road safety among college students in Goa

Background: Road traffic accidents (RTAs) constitute leading cause of death among adolescents as well as young adults making it an important public health problem. Road traffic injuries are now the leading killer among people aged 5–29 years. Annually, roughly 400,000 youngsters under 25 years age succumb to death in a road traffic crash accounting to about 1049 youngsters every day. Knowing the rules and regulations regarding road safety forms an important aspect in preventing RTAs. Objective: This study aimed at assessing the knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding road safety among college students. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 428 college students from B. Com, M. Com, BCA, BBA, and BA studying at Rosary College of Commerce and Arts, Navelim, Salcete, South Goa, using a pre-designed questionnaire to assess the awareness and practices regarding road safety. Sampling was done using census method. Results: Majority of the students were aged 20 years with female preponderance. Overall knowledge and attitude regarding road safety was good, however, it was seen that it was not well practiced. There was a statistically significant difference found between gender and some variables such as compulsory use of seatbelt and helmet, use of mobile phones while driving, and having a valid license for driving. The most common reasons for RTAs cited by the study participants were bad roads (45.4%), overspeeding (21.3%), and overtaking (19.4%). Conclusions: Bringing about behavior change regarding road safety measures through information, education, and communication activities and improving legislative measures of traffic rules will contribute in making people responsible citizens of the country which will eventually bring reduction in the sufferings and death due to RTAs.

Factors affecting accessibility of maternal health-care institutions in Meghalaya: A hospital-based study

BACKGROUND: The present study determines to understand the maternal health-care infrastructure in Meghalaya, a state of Northeast India. The state has large number of population of 2,964,007 (Census 2011), however, the state has only two public District Hospitals related to maternal health-care services – one in East Khasi Hills District and the other one in West Garo Hills District. Furthermore, according to the National Rural Health Mission (2015–2016), the maternal mortality ratio of Meghalaya is 211/100,000 live births which is higher than the national average. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A hospital-based mixed method study has carried out to identify the problems faced by the women during their maternity period and to assess the quality and availability of maternal care infrastructure in Meghalaya. To conduct the interview, the present study covered all 80 pregnant women who were admitted in the major two district maternal health-care hospitals of Meghalaya for maternity care (i.e., delivery and postdelivery period) during the period of hospital visit in October 2019. RESULTS: The study shows that majority of the admitted women came from different villages of different districts of Meghalaya as those remote areas have no adequate maternal health-care institutions nearby other than dispensary or subcenter. The study also revealed that women who came to get treatment in hospital during pregnancy had to face difficulties like to travel a long distance, use public transport, bad road conditions, and financial problems. CONCLUSION: To improve the health scenario of health-care system in the remote village areas, the Government should give more focus on infrastructure development in terms of availability of adequate facilities for handling any emergency cases of maternal care in remote areas of Meghalaya.

تجارة جنوب كُردُستان العثمانية خلال القرن التاسع عشر

The current research sheds light on some of the activities related to trading the nineteenth century in the Kurdish cities, markets, storehouses, travel routes, merchants, crops, products, natural or locally made products. The research also discusses the local or regional partners who were parts of the trade business, especially the Iranian cities and the cities in the south of Anatol. The research examines the most important imported and exported goods. The research also shows that trading was not restricted to certain merchants, all people had the chance to trade. In addition, the obstacles faced by the tradesmen in this area, such as the instability because of the policy of the walli (governors) or because of the bad roads, or the because of tribal rules, are discussed. The research offers more details concerning the life in the Kurdish society at that time through the trade business of this region. Due to lack of literature related to the trade in the Kurdish cities during the Ottoman empire, especially the numbers and statistics about the size of the goods imported and exported in the southern Kurdistan region during that period, more focus is placed on the nineteenth century as there is clearer information about this period. The research depends on the valuable observations provided by the travelers who visited southern Kurdistan as well as some information available on the registry of the Iraqi willayat about the trade business of the Kurdish cities.

Comparative Analysis of Intelligent Driving and Safety Assistance Systems Using YOLO and SSD Model of Deep Learning

Bad road conditions are one of the main causes of road accidents around the world. These kinds of accidents prove to be fatal as many lives are lost in these accidents that are mainly caused by potholes or distress on surface of roads. This paper suggests a system that will not only help in reducing the chances of these accidents by making the driver aware of the upcoming distress/potholes on the road but also saving the location of these potholes which can be sent to respective authorities so that they can be repaired. The authors have used technologies like image processing, computer vision, deep learning, and internet of things (IoT) to make this happen. It uses a camera mounted in front near windshield that will capture the images which will be further be processed to get the location of the potholes and distress on road. These detected potholes can be projected on a heads-up display (HUD) placed near windshield which will notify the driver of the potholes.

WSPÓŁCZESNY DRAMAT UKRAIŃSKI WOBEC WOJNY: NA PRZYKŁADZIE SZTUKI NATALII WOROŻBYT ZŁE DROGI

The subject of this study is the play Bad roads (2017) written by the Ukrainian playwright Natalya Vorozhbit. The text was commissioned by the Royal Court Theatre (London). It was also staged in Kiev and received the award for “Best Direction” (Tamara Trunova, GRA Festival, 2019). The action in the drama takes place during the war in eastern Ukraine in 2014-2016. The writer visited these areas and conducted many interviews. In Bad roads N. Vorozhbit focuses not on warfare but on the catastrophic impact of war on everyday life. The author is interested in how war damages the human mentality and psyche, how it influences building interpersonal relationships in new conditions, how war produces the desire to hurt people close to us, as well as unfamiliar ones, and how it affects the formation of intimate relationships. It is significant that an important role in the drama was intended for women and aspects such as love, sex and erotic feelings. The author of the publication focuses on the three most important problems raised in the text: violence, trauma and the creation of a hero (first glorification and then de-heroisation).

Economic efficiency of rice farming: a stochastic frontier analysis approach

The future of agriculture is dependent on increase in the use of resources at disposal, it is therefore imperative that strategies to increase agricultural growth should be directed towards increasing efficiency of smallholder farming operations and resource utilization. This study examined the economic efficiency of rice production. Multistage sampling procedure was used to select 240 rice farmers with the aid of a structured questionnaire. Data collected were analyzed with descriptive techniques, Stochastic Frontier Analysis (SFA) and Tobit regression model. The SFA result revealed that input variables such as seed, herbicide and pesticide were positive and had significant effect on rice output. The rice farmers were able to maximize their output by 74% at lowest minimum cost possible. Furthermore, economic efficiency was positively influenced by age, level of education, membership of farmers association, access to public market and access to health facilities while household size, farming experience, bad road condition and distance to nearest market had negative effects. The study concluded that rice farmers were inefficient. Therefore, in order to raise rice production efficiency and improve the livelihood of smallholder farmers, farmers should attend formal and informal education as it is a key policy issue in the study area, farmers should strengthen the existing association structures and organize new farmer’s associations. Also, the local and regional governments were encouraged to provide good road networks, and public market that will enable farmers dispose their produce at attractive places and prices of their choice.

Analysis of Scale-Efficiency of Rice Production among Beneficiaries of Anchor Borrowers Programme in Adamawa State, Nigeria

This study examined the scale efficiency of rice production among beneficiaries of anchor borrowers programme (ABP) in Adamawa State, Nigeria. Multistage random sampling was employed to select respondents for the study. Structured questionnaires were the instruments used for data collection. A sample of 139 farmers was used for the study. Percentages, means, frequency, ranking, and data envelopment analysis were the analytical tools employed. The results of the socioeconomic characteristics of the respondents revealed that the majority (76.3%) of them was headed by males; most (61.1%) were within the ages of 21-40 years. Results from the data envelopment analysis showed that mean scale efficiency observed was 59%, out of the rice farms studied; 78% were scale inefficient as they operated under increased return to scale (IRS) and decreased return to scale (DRS) assumptions and therefore, operated at stage I and stage III of the production process, respectively. The major constraints faced by rice farmers in the study area were identified among others to be prevalence of pests and diseases, bad roads, and high cost of labour. Finally, it was recommended among others that policies geared towards investment in pest and disease control, good access roads to farms and means of transport towards achieving effective productivity and scale efficiency should be formulated.

Minimizing Cost of Transportation By Vogel’s Approximation Method: A Case Study of Maisango Cement Nigeria Plc

This piece of research was conducted to optimize the procedures of transporting and distributing of Cement products from MAISANGO Cement Plc to the require destinations which resultant to the reduction of operating cost of transportation problems that usually occurs due to the nature of bad roads to some selected locations in Lagos state- Nigeria. To minimize the cost, a mathematical optimization model (Vogel Approximation method) has been utilized to ease the processes of transporting the product to the various locations.

Socioeconomic Dynamics in Women's Access and Utilization of Health Technologies in Rural Nigeria.

Technology has become a powerful tool for resolving women's health problems hence women's access and use of healthcare technologies have become an important aspect of the Sustainable Development Goals. Though health technologies have improved the lives of women worldwide, in Nigeria, especially in rural settings, use of health technologies remains low. The objective of this study was to examine the socioeconomic dynamics that influence the use of health technologies by women in rural Nigeria. A cross sectional survey using qualitative methods to collect data from 147 purposively selected women (15-65 years) was conducted in three rural Local Government Areas in Enugu State. Focus Group Discussion (FGD) and In-depth interview guides were used to collect information from 147 purposively selected women and healthcare workers on access and use of health technologies among women in rural communities. Thematic analytic method was used to analyze the data. The data gathered revealed that there was unavailability of health technologies in some communities studied while many had skeletal provision of health technologies. Bad road networks, cost of transportation and unavailability of health technologies impacted on access. Low socioeconomic status of rural women influenced their use of health technologies. Health technologies especially diagnostic technologies are not available in rural communities. Women cannot access what is not available. The study recommends need for the provision of these lifesaving technologies at little or no cost.

A Logistic Regression model of Road Traffic Fatalities in Benue State: Implication to Public Health

Road accident fatalities remain one of the major causes of deaths in Nigeria. These accidents sometimes appear to occur at some flashpoints where there are sharp bends or curves, Potholes due to bad roads, and bad sections of the highways. The study aimed to model road traffic fatalities in Benue State with implications for public health. The data used for the study was sourced from the department of the rescue unit, Federal Road Safety Corps, Benue State Command from July 2011-December 2019. To better comprehend the impact of sex on successfully having a non-fatal accident, we employed a logistic regression analysis. The results indicated that for the 3,545 RTAs used in the model, the model correctly predicted whether or not someone will have a fatal accident 81.7% of the time. The results further showed that females have .970 times the odds of not having a fatal accident compared to males with statistically significant value (P =.015, 95% C.I .652, .956). The results also stated that males demonstrated a greater likelihood to be involved in a fatal accident than the female with statistically significant difference (P =.015, 95% C.I .652, .956). The study, therefore concluded that sex or gender is an influential predictor and as such, has a significant effect on the status of an accident. The implication of the results to public health is that people are likely to spend more money on hospital bills with an increased number of disabilities caused as a result of these accidents which may result to a reduction in physical activity in the next decade if the rate of accidents is not controlled.

Land satellite imagery and integrated geophysical investigations of highway pavement instability in southwestern Nigeria

The high global numbers of road accidents due to bad roads and the failure of other engineering structures have necessitated this study, particularly as road transport accounts for a higher percentage of cargo movement in African countries. The geophysical investigation was carried out on six failed and two stable sections along the Ibadan-Iwo-Osogbo highway to examine the geological factors responsible for highway failure in the area. A Landsat ETM+ (Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus) imagery of the study area and its environs was acquired and processed for lineaments analyses. Magnetic, Very Low Frequency Electromagnetic (VLF-EM) and electrical resistivity methods involving Schlumberger Vertical Electrical Sounding (VES) and 2-D imaging using a dipole- dipole array were utilized. Lineaments were identified across failed localities. Lateral magnetic variations in the near-surface geological materials characterized the study area. The 2-D VLF-EM models generated showed conductive zones corresponding to fractured zones of conductive clay materials within the basement rocks. Subgrade soils below the highway pavement along the failed sections are typical of incompetent clayey and sandy clay/clayey sand formations with resistivity values between 20–475 Ω∙m. In comparison, the subgrade soil beneath the stable sections has moderate to high resistivity values of 196–616 Ω∙m. 2-D resistivity structures across the failed segments identified low resistivity water-absorbing clay and lithological contacts. Water absorbing, clay enriched subgrade soils and the identified near-surface linear conductive features are the major geologic factors, and poor drainage network resulted in the highway failure. Remote sensing and geophysical investigations of the geological sequence and structures underlying the highway should be carried out before construction to effectively complement the routine geotechnical studies to ensure the sustainability of road nfrastructure.

Occupational lower back pain among bus conductors of Udupi district, Karnataka

Although studies have reported lower back pain (LBP) in professional drivers, the conductors travelling in the same bus who share the same working environment are often neglected. Thus, the present study was undertaken to assess the prevalence of LBP and the factors associated with it. The study included 237 bus conductors from government bus depots. The data regarding occupational, non-occupational and environmental factors were collected by interview technique using a structured questionnaire. Self-reported back pain in the last 12 months in or near the lumbosacral spine was considered a case of LBP. The study revealed that 27.4% had LBP. The multivariate analysis suggested that tobacco smoking, self-reported bad road conditions and lack of enough breaks during work were significant risk factors. Thus, to conclude, the conductors are at risk of LBP that can be attributed to occupational as well as non-occupational factors.

Road Condition Monitoring with Grading System

India has the highest number of two-wheeler riders in the entire world. As Indians think that twowheelers are more convenient a lot of people use them for their daily activities. Delivery boys for a lot of companies also prefer to use a two-wheeler as it is more economically convenient. Along with this, people also use twowheelers for rushing to the workplace avoiding a lot of traffic. The majority of these people can be classified as young adults. A lot of people complain about back issues due to the bad road conditions that they face while travelling every day. Our system uses the sensor consisting of the accelerometer and the gyroscope to analyze the condition of the road and classify how bad the current condition of the road actually is. The system will not only classify the road as good or bad but also provide a rating to the road based on how severe the condition of the road actually is. The sensors will be calibrated according to a particular vehicle which will be beneficial for the rider. The system will also provide the best option of the road from travelling from point A to point B provided if there are multiple options available and the analysis of all the options has been done previously.

Effect of road conditions on physiological stress responses and post-transportation growth and survival of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) fingerlings

ABSTRACT To understand the effects of road condition on physiological changes and post-transportation growth and mortalities, different groups of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) fingerlings (Average mass: 0.37 g) were transported over good (fully asphalted road) or bad roads (dirt road with bumpy surface) for 6 h. Physiological stress responses as well as post-transportation survival rates and growth performance indices were assessed for the fish groups transported over the different road conditions. Transportation over the bad road significantly increased MO2 and TAN excretion rates. The bad road induced significantly higher (p = .0215) post-transportation mortality rates of nearly 12% over 7 d post-transportation, compared to just 2% for the fish transported over the good road. From an economic viewpoint, the 12% mortality rates recorded for the fish transported over the bad road could represent significant monetary losses in instances where large quantities of fingerlings are purchased and transported.

Role of bad road season in the formation of surface sediment runoff in urban environment

Problem Statement. The relevance of the research is caused by the need to study the processes of contemporary sedimentation in urban area, which reduce the quality of urban environment and have negative impact on the environmental state. The objective of the study is to determine the role of bad road periods in fall, spring, and summer. The material for the study is represented by the meteorological data for the period from fall 2005 to summer 2019. Meteorological conditions were analyzed in the context of formation of surface sediment runoff in bad road periods. The study was conducted on the example of Ekaterinburg (Russia). The following meteorological conditions were analyzed: time of the start, end and duration of bad road period, the thermal regime, precipitation, and the state of soil surface. Results. It was found that the climate changes in winter and spring led to a change in the regime of thawing. Spring thaw begins earlier relative to average start dates. The duration of bad road period in fall has increased by a month, it began to start earlier and end later relative to average dates. Excess atmospheric precipitations and low temperature contribute to an increase in the bad road period. In summer bad road period, the air temperature decreases and the amount of precipitation increases. For the beginning and middle of the spring, the end of autumn bad road period, the state of the surface of soils is characterized by snow cover. At the end of spring and at the beginning of autumn thaw, the moist state of the soil surface prevails. In spring thaw, the soil moisturizing was noted more often than in fall. In the spring and autumn thaw, the maximum overmoistening of soils takes place, the maximum amount of dirt is formed in Ekaterinburg. The results can be used in planning the measures to improve the environmental situation in the urban areas.