Transport Accidents Research Articles

Injury related hospitalization: evidence from one year retrospective study

Abstract Background Injury remains a significant global public health issue, especially in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). According to the IHME data Georgia has slightly higher rates of Injury-related DALYs, then WHO European Region average and significantly exceed the average of the Upper Middle Income countries group, to which country belongs according to the World Bank classification. The aim of the study was to explore the epidemiological characteristics of injury in Georgia. Methods This study was designed in the framework of NIH-Fogarty International Trauma Training Program iCREATE. Hospitalization Database of the National Center for Disease Control and Public Health of Georgia for 2021 was used for the retrospective study. Hospitalization database includes data from all hospitals of the country. Injury related cases were identified using ICD-10 classifications (S and T codes). Results A total of 564411 patients, among them 29228 injured patients were admitted in all hospitals of Georgia in 2021. 61% of injured patients were males and 39% females, retrospectively with ratio 1:1.5. The mean age of injured patients was 42(±25) and the highest hospitalization was in the age group of 30-34. The leading cause of injuries was falls (51.9%) followed by accidental exposure to other and unspecified factors (15.5%) and road traffic injuries (9.5%). Most of injured patients (45%) were treated in the capital of Georgia, Tbilisi. The most common source of hospital arrival was ambulance (47%), followed by private/public transport (46%), the 7% of patients needed referral from one hospital to another. The average of LOS was 4 days. 1% of patients died, among them 67% were males and 33% females. The most common mechanism of fatal injuries was falls (47%), followed by transport accidents (24%). Conclusions This study provide baseline information about epidemiological characteristics of Injuries based on hospitalization database and identify direction for the future research. Key messages • In Georgia there is a need for elaborating relevant preventive interventions of injuries in population. • In LMICs there is a lack of data on Injuries which are essential for elaborating relevant preventive interventions.

Technological Aspects of Methane–Hydrogen Mixture Transportation through Operating Gas Pipelines Considering Industrial and Fire Safety

Pipeline transportation is widely regarded as the most cost-effective method for conveying substantial volumes of hydrogen across extensive distances. However, before hydrogen can be widely used, a new pipeline network must be built to reliably supply industrial users. An alternative way to rather expensive investments in new infrastructure could be to use the existing pipeline network to add pure hydrogen to natural gas and further transport the gas mixture in an industrially safe way. The new solution necessities will be examined for compression, transportation, and fire hazard accidents, which have not been scrutinized by other scholars. This study presents the results of a comprehensive analysis of the methane–hydrogen mixture compression process and a mathematical description of the main pipeline operation during gas mixture transportation, considering industrial fire safety issues. By examining a case study involving a main gas pipeline and its associated mathematical model for hydrogen transportation, it becomes feasible to assess the potential hazards associated with various leakage areas and the subsequent occurrence of fires. The findings of this investigation demonstrate that the spontaneous combustion of hydrogen due to leakage from a natural gas pipeline is directly influenced by the proportion of hydrogen present in the gas mixture. If the hydrogen percentage reaches a balanced ratio of 50–50%, it is plausible that the equipment at the compressor station could be subject to detrimental consequences, potentially leading to accidents and fires. Furthermore, the obtained results from modeling in ANSYS Fluent software propose two practical scenarios, which demonstrate that despite the limited research conducted on the safety aspects and the occurrence of fires during the operation of hydrogen gas pipelines, industrial and fire safety necessitate the inclusion of hydrogen transport infrastructure as a pivotal element within the broader framework of hydrogen infrastructure development.

Package Performance Study: A Historical Perspective and Planning for a Path Forward

The topic of spent nuclear fuel (SNF) transportation often draws public attention and concerns regarding safety, and with large-scale shipping campaigns expected in the future, public interest is anticipated to substantially increase. In 1999, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) began an initiative called the Package Performance Study (PPS) that initially focused on SNF transportation cask responses to severe transportation accidents. A public participation approach was to be used to help guide the scope and parameters of the study, which was also to consider using full-scale physical testing of a SNF transportation cask, where appropriate. In 2010, the NRC decided not to go forward with physical testing as proposed. In 2006, the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) conducted a study on SNF and high-level radioactive waste transportation in the United States. The NAS study recommended that full-scale cask testing, as well as other accepted methodologies, continue to be used as part of the package performance evaluation. In 2012, the Blue Ribbon Commission on America’s Nuclear Future (BRC) recommended conducting the PPS with a full-scale rail transportation cask for the purpose of building public trust and confidence in the safety of SNF transport. In 2021, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) restarted a consent-based siting process, focusing on how to site federal facilities for the interim consolidated storage of SNF using a consent-based approach. Large-scale SNF transportation would be necessary for any such interim storage facility. As the planning activities begin for future large-scale shipping campaigns, the DOE is considering options for conducting a DOE-led PPS to help build public trust and confidence in the transportation of SNF. Therefore, the DOE is gathering information related to the previous NRC-led PPS efforts, as well as applicable international experience with the testing of SNF packages. This paper discusses previous NRC efforts, as well as the current status of a DOE-led PPS, which is in the early planning stages.

Deep-learning-based multistate monitoring method of belt conveyor turning section

During transportation, bulk materials are susceptible to spillage due to equipment instability and environmental factors, resulting in increased maintenance costs and environmental pollution. Thus, intelligent and efficient condition monitoring is crucial for maintaining operational efficiency of transfer equipment. It facilitates the timely identification of potential safety hazards, preventing accidents from occurring or their impact from spreading, thereby minimizing production and maintenance costs. This study presents a deep-learning-based multioperation synchronous monitoring method suitable for belt conveyors that integrate target segmentation and detection networks to simultaneously diagnose belt deviation, measure conveying load, identify idlers, and do other tasks on a self-made dataset. This method effectively reduces the complexity of multistate simultaneous monitoring and monitoring costs, thereby avoiding environmental pollution caused by transportation accidents. Experimental results show that the segmentation accuracy of the proposed method can be up to 88.72%, with a detection accuracy of 91.3% and an overall inference speed of 90.9 frames per second. Furthermore, by extending the dataset, the proposed method can incorporate additional tasks, such as belt damage, scattered material, and foreign object identifications. This study has practical significance in ensuring the normal and eco-friendly operation of bulk material transportation. Our source dataset is available at https://github.com/zhangzhangzhang1618/dataset-for-turnning-section

Sustainable transportation: Definitions, dimensions, and indicators – Case study of importance-performance analysis for the city of Tehran

Despite the advantages of transportation development, its negative consequences, including greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, air pollution, increasing energy consumption, traffic, and accidents in transportation, have caused serious concern in the world community. Following the global efforts to introduce the framework for sustainable development (SD), the sustainability concept entered the transportation of literature known as sustainable transportation (ST). We didn't find a universally agreed definition and indicators for (ST). To overcome this limitation, we extracted special terms in different definitions of (ST) and widely used indicators in selected articles. Using 60 widely used indicators and the importance-performance analysis (IPA) method, we evaluated the transportation of Tehran. Like some metropolises, Tehran city has high air and noise pollution, congestion, traffic, and accidents. The main advantage of our research is the possibility to simultaneously assess the importance, performance, and prioritize performance of indicators for improvement, with optimal cost and time. Our evaluation showed that 41 indicators (68.34%) have high importance, but their performance is low and should be improved. 80% of these indicators were related to social and environmental dimensions. We prioritized Tehran's transportation indicators and provided recommendations to improve their performance. Prioritizing indicators showed that improving the performance of Tehran's transportation, reducing natural resource consumption, attention to human health, and reducing energy consumption have high priority. Finally, we have provided a comprehensive definition (ST) of widely used terms.

МЕТОДЫ ОЦЕНКИ СТОИМОСТИ АДАПТАЦИИ ЖЕЛЕЗНОДОРОЖНОЙ ИНФРАСТРУКТУРЫ К ИЗМЕНЕНИЮ КЛИМАТА

To obtain statistical data on damages from accidents in railway transport due to climatic reasons, as well as on the costs of their elimination, publicly available sources of information on natural disasters and railway accidents in Russia and the world were analyzed. Science-based methods for estimating the cost of measures taken to adapt the railway infrastructure to climate change are proposed.

ДИНАМИКА ЖЕЛЕЗНОДОРОЖНЫХ ПРОИСШЕСТВИЙ, УЩЕРБОВ И ЗАТРАТ НА ИХ ЛИКВИДАЦИЮ

The analysis of statistical data on damages from accidents in the railway transport of the Russian Federation due to climatic reasons and the costs of their elimination was carried out. The distributions of the number of incidents, damages and the cost of their elimination by years, months and railways are constructed.

Maritime Transportation Accidents: A Bibliometric Analysis

Purpose: The article aims to highlight the concept of risk management in maritime transportation accidents in the specialized literature on the Web of Sciences database through existing materials. Design/methodology/ approach: The keyword study identifies several keywords as they have been set in this study and as they appear in the Web of Science database. Using VOSviewer our main concern is to identify and highlight the most essential and questioned words associated with the “maritime accidents” and “other issues related with maritime accidents” concept. We extracted 456 articles, underlined 259 keywords with the similar meaning to the keywords we have selected in the previous stage. Findings: We found that the maritime transportation accidents (MTA) topic has limited expansion in the literature. The gaps are considerably big leaving space for further research. The analysis of the keywords proves an interconnection between the MTA, the risk models, safety, management organization and more. Research limitations/implementations: Although there has been an increased interest in this field especially among countries with the shipping sector highly developed (maritime universities in China, London Poland, etc.), we have noticed that the related studies are still at the beginning, especially if we consider the accounting side of this subject. Originality value: The present article can only be the beginning of a set of studies in MTA, given that the issue has an increasing interest in academia. For future research, we can consider using a larger sample, more keywords, and additional databases.

Mining the Critical Factors of Hazardous Material Road Transportation Accidents From Chinese Investigation Reports

Rather than reducing losses after an accident, identifying critical accident factors is a better approach because it can be used to prevent accidents. Hazard materials (HAZMAT) road transportation is a complex sociotechnical system that involves three major procedures. Staff, vehicles, and tanks directly participate in this transport system, while different companies and government departments manage or supervise personnel and equipment. Moreover, all these stakeholders must obey ten types of industrial standards or regulations. The accident investigation reports contain the critical factors of the accident. Specifically, using a series of natural language processing (NLP) technologies, the accident causes in 137 Chinese reports are extracted, classified, and formatted. Then, a Bayesian network (BN) is constructed using the structural restrictions learning algorithm based on structured accident data from the reports. Finally, critical accident factors are revealed through sensitivity analysis of the BN. The results show that inadequate or delayed operation, which includes subordinate management factors and supervision factors, is the most critical factor among the five factors grouped. Actual accident data can explain the results. Combining the actual data and accident model, the accident analysis approach proposed in this paper considers the structural relations and frequency of accident factors.

퇴원심층분석조사자료를 활용한 노인의 운수사고 유형의 요인분석

퇴원심층분석조사자료를 활용한 노인의 운수사고 유형의 요인분석

Feature selection of gray-level Cooccurrence matrix using genetic algorithm with Extreme learning machine classification for early detection of Pole roads

Land transportation accidents are a severe problem in Indonesia. Factors that cause land transportation accidents include driver negligence, not road-worthy vehicles, and damaged road conditions. In 2018, according to data from the Indonesian Central Statistics Agency, the number of accidents in Indonesia due to damaged roads was around 36,89%. One of the types of road damage is potholes. Potholes have the potential to trigger road accidents, especially for motorcyclists. By looking at current technological developments, the Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV) is a transportation technology that does not have a crew that can help detect obstacles on the highway, such as potholes. The potholed road itself has a different texture from normal roads. The pothole texture value can be represented using Gray-Level Cooccurrence Matrix (GLCM) as a feature extraction algorithm. GLCM has several features and combinations, namely the distance and angle features of GLCM. Too many features are difficult to implement in artificial intelligence because it requires a long computation time. The system needs to produce a fast computation time in detecting the pothole so that it can be implemented in real-time. A Genetic Algorithm is applied to perform feature selection. Furthermore, the classification method is used Extreme Learning Machine (ELM). The GLCM features used are 128 features which will be tested three times with the selection results obtained as a combination of 57 features, 20 features, and 12 features. Based on the best variety of features in the video test, the accuracy is a combination of features 57 of 88,65% and a computation time of 0,115 s. The best overall conclusion is the combination of feature selection 20 and 12 because it has an accuracy of 87,36% and 86,48%, which is not much different from feature selection 57. However, it has a much faster computation time of 0,069 s and 0,062 s.

Disasters in the Northern Triangle: A Descriptive Analysis Using the EM-DAT Database 1902-2022.

Since 1902, disasters in the Northern Triangle of Central America, which consists of the countries Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador, have caused over one-hundred-thousand deaths, affected millions of people, and caused tens of billions of dollars in damages. Understanding the nature and frequency of these events will allow stakeholders to decrease both the acute damages and the long-term deleterious consequences of disasters. This study provides a descriptive analysis of all disasters recorded in the Emergency Events Database (EM-DAT) affecting Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador from 1902-2022. Data were collected and analyzed from the EM-DAT, which categorizes disasters by frequency, severity, financial cost, distribution by country, burden of death, number of people affected, financial cost by country, and type of disasters most prevalent in each country. Results are presented as absolute numbers and as a percentage of the overall disaster burden. These trends are then graphed over the time period of the database. The EM-DAT recorded 359 disasters in the Northern Triangle from 1902 through 2022. Meteorologic events (floods and storms) were the most common types of disaster (44%), followed by transport accidents (13%). Meteorologic events and earthquakes were the most severe, as measured by deaths (62%), people affected (60%), and financial cost (86%). Guatemala had the greatest number of disasters (45%), deaths (68%), and affected people (52%). The financial costs of the disasters were evenly distributed between the three countries. Meteorologic disasters are the most common and most severe type of disaster in the Northern Triangle. Earthquakes and transport accidents are also common. As climate change causes more severe storms in the region, disasters are likely to increase in severity as well. Governments and aid organizations should develop disaster preparedness and mitigation strategies to lessen the catastrophic effects of future disasters. Missing data limit the conclusions of this study to general trends.

Road Safety Awareness: Australian Road Crash Case Study

Road transportation accidents are a significant public health and safety issue worldwide. In Australia, regarding transport-related deaths, the age-standardized rate was higher in one specific year compared to the preceding year. This study aims to make visualization of crash data in Australia play a crucial role in understanding the country's current state of road safety and developing strategies to improve it. Data visualization techniques are essential in understanding and addressing road safety in Australia. New South Wales has the highest number of accidents in Australia, with 16,293 cases. Accidents in New South Wales are projected to decline gradually over the next three years. The peak time for accidents is 3 PM on weekdays, with males being more involved than females. Drivers are the most involved road users in accidents. Implementing targeted road safety initiatives, gender-specific awareness campaigns, and driver safety programs can help reduce accidents in New South Wales and create a safer environment for all road users. By analyzing accident data visually, patterns and trends can be identified, leading to targeted interventions and improved safety measures to reduce the number of accidents and fatalities on the roads.

Temporal change and spatial heterogeneity of the association between ambient temperature and transport accidents mortality in Japan

Temporal change and spatial heterogeneity of the association between ambient temperature and transport accidents mortality in Japan

A case-oriented computational study for sustainable fleet planning in a battery closed-loop supply chain network under uncertainty

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to develop a holistic optimization model for an integrated sustainable fleet planning and closed-loop supply chain (CLSC) network design problem under uncertainty.Design/methodology/approachA novel mixed-integer programming model that is able to consider interactions between vehicle fleet planning and CLSC network design problems is first developed. Uncertainties of the product demand and return fractions of the end-of-life products are handled by a chance-constrained stochastic program. Several Pareto optimal solutions are generated for the conflicting sustainability objectives via compromise and fuzzy goal programming (FGP) approaches.FindingsThe proposed model is tested on a real-life lead/acid battery recovery system. By using the proposed model, sustainable fleet plans that provide a smaller fleet size, fewer empty vehicle repositions, minimal CO2 emissions, maximal vehicle safety ratings and minimal injury/illness incidence rate of transport accidents are generated. Furthermore, an environmentally and socially conscious CLSC network with maximal job creation in the less developed regions, minimal lost days resulting from the work's damages during manufacturing/recycling operations and maximal collection/recovery of end-of-life products is also designed.Originality/valueUnlike the classical network design models, vehicle fleet planning decisions such as fleet sizing/composition, fleet assignment, vehicle inventory control, empty repositioning, etc. are also considered while designing a sustainable CLSC network. In addition to sustainability indicators in the network design, sustainability factors in fleet management are also handled. To the best of the authors' knowledge, there is no similar paper in the literature that proposes such a holistic optimization model for integrated sustainable fleet planning and CLSC network design.

Route optimization of hazardous freight transportation in a rail-truck transportation network considering road traffic restriction

With the increasing demand for chemical products in China, how to manage the risks associated with hazardous freight transportation has attracted arising attentions from both government and industry practitioners. From the perspective of carrier companies, transportation modal choice and routing for hazardous freight transportation need to be carefully designed, which motivates current research. This paper aims to optimize the service mode and routing for hazardous freight transportation in a rail-truck network with bi-objectives optimization approach. Several practical concerns are addressed, including the coordination of rail transportation which has fixed train running plan and road transportation which is flexible and mobile, and the consideration of alternative path when the expressway is temporally blocked for hazardous freight due to the traffic restriction measurements on inter-city road segments. Furthermore, the time-varying transportation risks and costs associated with accidents of hazardous freight transportation are investigated. The Max-Min Ant-colony Algorithm (MMAS) algorithm is adopted for solution. For model validations and conclusion generalization, this paper implements a real-life case study in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region in China with the objective of minimizing transportation risks and costs. The solutions show that traffic restrictions have an adverse impact on the carrier and alternative paths are able to help the carriers further optimize their routing strategy. A careful consideration and appropriate processing of differences in operational characteristics of two transportation modes, is able to provide a better and more realistic understanding of rail-truck hazardous freight transportation problem.

Development of MCDM-based Frameworks for Proactively Managing the Most Critical Risk Factors for Transport Accidents: A Case Study in Libya

Road transport accidents are a major public health concern in Libya, with one of the highest death rates in the world. In this paper, we propose a hybrid approach using the improved fuzzy step-wise weight assessment ratio analysis (IMF-SWARA) method to identify the most critical risk factors for transport accidents, and the combined compromise solution (CoCoSo) method to rank the strategies for mitigating these risks. Our study uses a case study in Libya to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach. The IMF-SWARA method is used to weight the risk factors for transport accidents, and our analysis shows that driver-related factors are the most critical risk factors. We then use the CoCoSo method to rank the strategies for mitigating these risks, and our analysis shows that driver training and education is the most important strategy. Our study suggests six strategies in total, which can be used by policymakers to proactively manage the risks associated with transport accidents in Libya. The proposed approach can be applied to other countries to identify critical risk factors and develop effective risk management frameworks.

Risk Assessment of Sudden Water Pollution Accidents Associated with Dangerous Goods Transportation on the Cross-Tributary Bridges of Baiyangdian Lake

The issue of sudden water pollution resulting from accidents is a challenging environmental problem to address. The frequency of transport accidents involving hazardous materials over tributary bridges is steadily rising due to rapid industrialization and urbanization processes. This trend poses a significant threat to both the water’s ecological environment and human well-being. To effectively mitigate the risks associated with water pollution caused by accidents during the transportation of dangerous goods, this research focused on Baiyangdian Lake, the largest freshwater lake in North China. Thid study employed the expert judgment fuzzy language method and Bayesian network model as analytical tools to assess and analyze the potential risks associated with sudden water pollution accidents caused by the transportation of hazardous materials on bridges spanning tributaries. Through an examination of the various risk factors involved, the research identified four primary indicators and ten secondary indicators. Additionally, an oil leakage accident scenario was simulated, and recommendations for risk prevention and control measures were provided. The findings of the study indicated that: (1) The likelihood of risk associated with driver factors, vehicle emergency factors, fuel tank emergency factors, road factors, and lighting factors is elevated. (2) The probability of a dangerous goods transportation accident occurring on the Baiyangdian cross-tributary bridge is substantial, thereby presenting a potential hazard to both the water environment and human health. (3) Vehicle emergency factors, vehicle wear factors, and weather factors exert a significant influence on the incidence of accidents. (4) The highest likelihood of accidents is associated with a combination of factors, including driver fatigue, vehicle and fuel tank deterioration, and adverse weather conditions. (5) In instances where the vehicle and fuel tank are well-maintained, the probability of accidents is greatest on the cross tributary bridge, particularly when the driver is fatigued, weather conditions are unfavorable, and there is a lack of street lighting during nighttime. Implementing emergency prevention and control measures proved to be an effective approach in mitigating the risk of sudden water pollution accidents. This study offers valuable insights into risk mitigation and management strategies for emergent water pollution incidents, and the framework presented herein can be readily applied to other rivers worldwide confronting comparable risk challenges.

Maritime accidents affect the environment

This paper highlights the effects of transport accidents on the environment, specifically those occurring in maritime transportation. International trading and shipping are important for several reasons. International trade and shipping facilitate the movement of goods and services between countries, contributing to economic growth and development. It allows countries to access resources, products, and markets they might not have domestically, thus expanding their economic potential. Not all countries possess the same resources or expertise. International trade enables countries to specialise in producing goods and services where they have a comparative advantage, leading to more efficient resource allocation and increased productivity. International trade provides consumers access to various goods and services at different prices. This enhances consumer choice and allows people to enjoy products that may not be available or affordable domestically. International trade fosters competition among businesses, driving them to innovate, improve quality, and reduce costs to stay competitive in the global marketplace. This benefits consumers through better products and lower prices. Export-oriented industries create jobs as they expand to meet global demand. These jobs often have higher wages due to the specialised skills required. International trade generates foreign exchange earnings for a country, which can be used to pay for imports, service foreign debt, and invest in other countries. A positive balance of payments is crucial for a stable economy. Trade exposes people to different cultures by exchanging goods, services, and ideas. This fosters greater understanding and co-operation among nations. Dependence on a single industry or market can be risky. International trade allows countries to diversify economies and reduce vulnerability to economic shocks. Shipping and transportation networks required for international trade often lead to improvements in infrastructure, including ports, roads, railways, and communication systems. These improvements benefit not only trade but also local communities. Trade can facilitate the transfer of technology, know-how, and best practices between countries. This helps less developed countries to catch up and develop more quickly. While shipping contributes to global carbon emissions, it also promotes energy-efficient practices through demand for cleaner and more sustainable transport options. In summary, international trading and shipping are essential drivers of economic growth, job creation, innovation, and cultural exchange, fostering co-operation and stability between nations while promoting efficient resource utilisation and diversification. The author performed a detailed statistical analysis based on the accident database. It explains the impacts on the environment and some remedies for it.

New Approaches to Improving Protection of the Urban Environment from Transport Accidents Based on the Use of Safe Materials

New Approaches to Improving Protection of the Urban Environment from Transport Accidents Based on the Use of Safe Materials