The author is keen that levels of safety required should be equal for all modes of transport. The use of cost-benefit analysis and cost-effectiveness analysis in the formulations of safety policy is briefly outlined. Current safety levels in various transport modes are surveyed. An attempt is made to calculate the social costs of traffic accidents using statistics for roads, railways and inland navigation in Belgium. The calculation determines the marginal social costs of accidents and the charges to be applied per vehicle-km allowing for the sums already paid by way of insurance premiums and compensation payments. Elements making up socio-economic costs are listed and include production losses, medical care, pain and suffering, damage to property, emergency services, legal costs and insurance company overheads. For road accidents figures are added for the year 1983 and an overall cost calculated in millions of Belgian francs. A similar exercise is carried out for railways and inland navigation using data from 1980-4. Charges are calculated by subtracting amounts already paid out in insurance premiums and compensation. The author concludes that it is possible to calculate the cost of accidents and that the results differ widely between modes.
Abstract