Currently, local councils in Victoria commit considerable funds to retrofitting traffic-calming devices onto existing road infrastructure in response to community concerns about speed, safety and amenity. New knowledge on improved safety treatments is constantly emerging. With the rapid development of new housing estates, there is an opportunity to put the latest knowledge into practice by designing subdivisions that provide the desired levels of safety, access and amenity. Integrating safety during the design stages of a subdivision affords resident safety high priority and more importantly, saves lives and injury. It also mitigates the costly need to rectify safety issues in the future and allows the optimum safety treatment option to be selected rather than a compromise based on past practices. Given the rapid residential growth within the City of Casey in outer metropolitan Melbourne, Victoria, the council initiated a review by Monash University Accident Research Centre (MUARC) of current best practices and current thinking in safe design of residential areas, to guide its future subdivision developments. This paper presents findings of the review addressing aspects such as road network, pedestrian and cyclist safety, intersection design and speed management. (a) For the covering entry of this conference, please see ITRD abstract no. 0612AR242E.
Abstract