This study investigates geostatistical approaches using ordinary Kriging and clustering analysis for traffic crash data in order to identify the traffic accident hot spots in North Dakota counties. The research analyzes 37 years (1975–2011) of fatality crash data available from a U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration official. The resulting geostatistical and tracking analyst model, based on single linkage method clustering, discovered significant facts and features and yielded critical threshold zones for higher accident prone counties/areas in North Dakota counties. Therefore, there is an avenue for improving traffic safety; consequentially, the outcomes of this research would facilitate the efforts or relevant agencies/industry in order to make better decisions for traffic safety planning, and administration. (Author/publisher)
Abstract