This Final Report of the project MASTER (MAnaging Speeds of Traffic on European Roads) summarises the results of the two-year research project. The main objective was to develop recommendations for speed management strategies and policies. Present speeds and speed management methods in Europe are described. The various impacts of speed are examined. A procedure for assisting decision-makers to determine appropriate levels of speed on different kinds of roads is outlined. Factors affecting drivers' choice of speed are studied. Different speed management measures and tools are assessed on the basis of literature studies, simulator experiments and field studies. Recommendations for speed management measures and tools are presented separately for four different road categories: urban residential streets, urban main roads, rural mixed traffic roads and motorways. It it concluded that further development of speed management could include, for example, harmonisation of speeds and speed limits in different countries, development of European guidelines for speed management on different kinds of roads, improvement of road design, further development and wider use of automated speed enforcement, and introduction of adaptive in-vehicle speed limiters. (A)
Abstract