Heavy vehicle freight transport in Australia is expected to double by 2020, as compared to 2000 levels. In New Zealand, similar growth in heavy vehicle transport is anticipated. The greatest impact from this growth will occur around urban areas where facilities such as ports, inter-modal freight terminals, large warehouses and distribution centres are located and accessed. The projected increase has significant implications for heavy vehicle road safety, particularly in urban areas where heavy vehicles will be required to share an increasingly constrained and congested road network with other road users. While the reported trend for crashes involving heavy vehicles indicates an overall continuing reduction, the number of crashes that involve a heavy vehicle, and the fatalities and injuries resulting from them, remain an important issue to address for the transport industry and road agencies in Australia and New Zealand. Through a review of literature and analysis of crash data at intersection and mid-block locations, this report outlines the primary contributing factors in heavy vehicle crashes on urban roads. Also discussed are treatments that could be considered by Australian and New Zealand agencies to address the identified safety deficiencies. The suitability and effectiveness of intelligent transport system (ITS) based treatments is explored and three countermeasures are nominated for consideration by Austroads as future trials to determine the effect these countermeasures may have on heavy vehicle safety. (Author/publisher)
Samenvatting