LTP 2006 Appendices

Role of Road Safety

'Improving safety is one of the Government’s highest priorities in transport'.

The importance being given to improving safety by the Government is supported by the Metropolitan Authorities.  For a long time, we have been active in promoting road safety through joint initiatives.  The Government has set out a framework for improving road safety based on ten main themes:

• Safety for children
• Safer drivers - training and testing
• Safer drivers - drink, drugs & drowsiness
• Safer infrastructure
• Safer speeds
• Safer vehicles
• Safer motorcycling
• Safer pedestrians, cyclists & horse riders
• Better enforcement
• Promoting safer road use

LTPs have an important role to play in tackling these ten themes.  The safety of road users will be a consideration for virtually all transport initiatives in our Area.  Safety features will be a major element in the linked strategies and programmes in the LTP2, for example Safer Routes to School and encouraging walking and cycling; as improved safety and perceptions of safety are the elements most necessary to bring success in achieving modal shift.  The relevance to LTP2 Objectives are outlined below:

• Economic Revitalisation – Accidents are a cost to the economy in terms of time lost, disruption and cost of treatment
• Accessibility and Social Inclusion – Road accidents, especially to vulnerable people, tend to show more in areas of deprivation and counter measures can usefully be integrated with other programmes
• Sustainable Travel Patterns – Accident reduction goes to the heart of sustainability
• Safety and Health – In addition to the obvious connection, accidents frequently lead to long-term health problems

However, it is recognised that the targets will not be met unless a proactive programme of road safety improvements aimed at all road users is also undertaken.

Present Situation

The Government's road safety strategy 'Tomorrow's Roads - Safer For Everyone' emphasises that a major improvement in road safety can only be achieved if the main 'partners' (Government, local authorities, police, motor manufactures, road users, etc.) work together.  We support this view, and we are looking to play our part in full.

We have had a downward trend for killed and seriously injured (KSI) casualties for a number of years and are on course to achieve the 2010 targets for KSI casualties.  This had been offset by increases in slight injuries that peaked in 2000.  Since then these have also been in decline returning almost to the 1994/98 average in 2004.  The total casualty numbers have reflected these trends.  Casualty numbers and trends are summarised in the following tables.

Particular concern is given to reducing the number and severity of child casualties.  Table 2 ‘Child Casualties (aged 0 to15)’ sets out the number of child casualties recorded in our Area in the latest eight years:

Table 3 Total Casualty Numbers for 2004 (broken down by Casualty Class)

	All Casualties	Child Casualties
Pedestrians	1,967	742
Pedal Cyclists	554	185
Powered Two Wheelers	749	12
Car Occupants	7,792	573
PSV Occupants	404	57
Others	348	15
TOTAL	11,814	1,584

Car occupant casualties form the largest group when all casualties are considered.  This group has been seeing a steady decrease since the 2000 figure although it is yet to reach the 1994/98 average of 7,696.  Child pedestrians form almost 50% of reported child casualties, although there is a downward trend in child pedestrian casualty numbers since 1999.

We prepare annual programmes of local safety and local area safety schemes, as discussed above.  The impacts of these programmes are contained in the LTP Transport Monitor, where three year 'before and after' accident figures are reported.  The returns for schemes completed in the 200/01 programme have an average first year rate of return of 207%.

The Local Safety Schemes Programme is developed as follows:

• Firstly accident data is analysed, to identify both the location and nature of accident problems
• Schemes may be developed at single sites (eg a junction or pedestrian crossing), along a route, within an area or targeting a particular group.
• Consultation forms a key part of determining the measures to be employed
• Priority is based on 'cost per accident saved' (which compares an estimate of the reduction in accidents with the cost of a scheme)

Areas for Local Area Safety Schemes are identified as follows:

• Areas within which a set of meaningful strategies can be developed and implemented
• Areas within which the desired interaction between measures, including any planned re-distribution of traffic, can be realised
• Areas which reflect coherent communities, and thus provide a suitable focus for consultation
• Areas that are manageable in terms of financial commitment, detailed design effort and satisfactory public involvement

Areas may include major routes as well as residential and local distributor roads and local centres.  Highest priority will be given to areas with poor safety records.  Designed measures frequently use learning from 'Safer Cities' and the principles from 'Urban Safety Management'.

The accident data shows that we have been successful in reducing the number of KSI casualties.  However, increased effort is required if the downward trend for KSIs is to be maintained and the trend for slight casualties to be reversed.

Concern has been raised by the Government concerning the higher incidence of road accidents in disadvantaged communities.  In the our Area, the programme of the engineering, education and safer routes to school projects have been aimed mainly at these deprived areas and they will remain a priority within the road safety strategy.  Many of these areas are also the target for community regeneration initiatives, in which transport improvements and road safety initiatives have an important part to play.

Consultation

Analysis of the accident data has been used to identify the nature and trends of the safety problem in the Metropolitan Area, for use in the development of the strategy for improving road safety in our Area, as set out below.  The strategy accords with the overall LTP2 strategy and takes into account the views and needs of local people and communities.  The strategy and actions have been developed in partnership with the Police and Health Authorities.

Concern about road safety, particularly the speed of traffic, featured highly in consultation on the 2003 LTP.  The public have also made it clear that improved safety is a necessity for maximising, cycling, walking and in safe routes to school programmes.

The 2004 and 2005 consultations asked about 'doing more to encourage safer motoring'.   The outcomes of both consultations showed, in a strategic context , that 'doing more to encourage safer motoring' and, consequently reduce road casualties, was a 'middle' priority, although it attracted high levels of agreement by respondents.

Strategy for Road Safety Improvement

Introduction

The safety of road users is of prime importance for all transport initiatives within our Area and is incorporated into linked strategies and programmes such as highway maintenance, Safer Routes to Schools, travel awareness, and cycling programmes.  The need to encourage road safety was strongly endorsed during consultation and has been confirmed during engagement with local communities on individual schemes.  Accident causes are diverse and we need targeted programmes to reduce the casualty toll.

The Government set national targets for casualty reduction in the 10-year plan.  We are on course to reduce the number of people killed or seriously injured by 2010 by 40%, reduce the number of children killed or seriously injured by 50%.  This good progress is reflected in our designation as a Centre of Excellence for Integrated Transport specialising in road safety.  However, we are not complacent and have adopted even more challenging targets.  Although reductions in casualties will become increasingly difficult, we see our targets as achievable with the funding which this plan allocates for a wide range of measures and programmes.

A computerised database is used to record all injury accidents reported to the police, identify particular problems, monitor the results of schemes and analyse trends against targets.

Opportunities to Improve Safety

It is essential that we tackle road safety in a coordinated way using both revenue and capital resources, given the complexity of the issues.  We achieve this:

In Partnership

The Government, West Midlands Police Authority and Highways Agency are the principal partners with which the Metropolitan Authorities work to reinforce the impact of road safety initiatives.  We raise awareness of drink driving campaigns, new traffic measures such as Red Routes, safety measures installed during recent maintenance of the M6 and A38(M), education campaigns such as the Driver Improvement Scheme, and our Help2Travel web site which provides real time information.

Corporately

Within Authorities, there are opportunities across Departments to improve road safety through:

• Education – Each Authority has road safety officers who co-coordinate initiatives such as Safer Routes to School and who provide material on road safety and cycling proficiency for schools
• Planning – Decisions on planning can have implications for road safety.  The scale and location of major housing, employment and shopping development can influence the need for car use rather than safer travel.  Regeneration of inner areas provides the opportunity for safer environments.  Local development provides the opportunity for safer layouts for housing, jobs, schools and shops, and for safer access by segregated footpaths, cycle ways and public transport; reducing the need for car travel
• Control – Authorities have regulatory powers to set standards for layout and access which ensure that developments encourage road safety

Directly

• Analysis – Authorities continue to analyse accident records to identify trends and characteristics such as age and sex, and location across broad areas and at 'cluster sites' to assist in identifying how and where there is most opportunity to tackle road safety problems.  The identification of targets provides the opportunity to focus programmes in the most effective way.  Future work is assisted by the results of 'before and after' studies and by reviews of individual schemes and programmes
• Improvements – Resources available through the Integrated Transport block and other sources, such as the Single Capital Pot and developer contributions, enable a limited programme of local safety schemes aimed at 'cluster sites'.  Safety improvements are also an important element of the assessment of Major Schemes
• Management – Maintenance and operation of transport systems provide opportunities which are incorporated into the deployment of revenue and capital resources.  Wider opportunities to improve road safety include surface maintenance, street lighting, signs, operation of safety cameras, employment of school crossing wardens and arrangements for winter gritting
• Innovation – Pilot studies provide an opportunity to evaluate new ideas.  Recent pilots have included an assessment of different types of road surfacing in bus lanes, and the development of road safety programmes for deprived areas
• Design – The adoption of design standards provides an opportunity to ensure road safety is built in from the beginning.  Consistent application of standards brings the benefits of past experience and consistency for road users.  Standards take in DfT Design Manual for Roads and Bridges, and experience from pilot and 'before and after' studies
• Audit – Independent safety audits provide opportunities to check individual schemes during the design, implementation and operational stages to identify ant tackle potential problems

Key Elements of the Strategy

Key elements are to:

• Use education, training and publicity to help road users travel as safely as possible
• Ensure that everyone has access to road safety advice, particularly schools
• Target safety training at vulnerable users such as cyclists and pedestrians
• Ensure all new infrastructure has been subjected to safety audits
• Implement local safety schemes targeted at accident blackspots
• Implement a programme to ensure compliance with speed limits and traffic signals, using enforcement cameras supported by educational campaigns and initiatives

Strategy Implementation

Our road safety education programme aims to equip road users with the knowledge and skills to travel as safely as possible.  Strategic partnerships have been established across partner authorities and public and private sector organisations to maximise the use of resources.

As a minimum, we aim to ensure that everyone who lives, work or travel in our Area has access to road safety advice and information.  Educational establishments are regularly encouraged to use the advice and resources available, particularly at key stages in vulnerability.  We also want to ensure that the public knows about road safety issues and legislation.  The Driver Improvement Scheme aims to educate drivers convicted of motoring offences about safe driving skills, as an alternative to a fine and / or penalty points.

This LTP2 includes programmes to improve traffic safety.  Local Safety Schemes are designed to tackle accident cluster sites using improved traffic signs, road markings, street lighting and junctions; anti-skid surfacing; pedestrian and cyclist facilities; and traffic calming measures.

Casualties per ward per 1,000 population on unclassified roads in the 10% most deprived wards in the Metropolitan Area are double the rate for the 10% least deprived wards, both for all casualties and for child casualties.

Many engineering, education and Safer Routes to School projects have been targeted at these deprived areas.  These areas will remain a priority.  Many areas are also a target for community regeneration, in which transport and road safety improvements have an important part.  There have already been a number of schemes to reduce the high number and severity of casualties, particularly among children, which will have made a significant impact.

The lessons from these initiatives will be applied throughout our Area and will be incorporated in a good practice guide for use by other local authorities.  Monitoring of trends against targets will continue throughout the LTP2 period, with the programme reviewed as necessary.

The Safer Routes to School Programme introduces physical measures in conjunction with education and training, to improve safety and encourage travel by more sustainable modes.  There is particular emphasis on the development of school travel plans.  This programme links into our LTP safety objectives and strategies for walking, cycling and public transport.  The approach is to establish partnerships under which local authorities undertake physical measures and schools commit to soft measures such as road safety awareness training, cycle and pedestrian training and Walk to School week.

The Department for Education & Science and Department for Transport have invested £50 million in school travel initiatives.  This funding has enabled authorities to take on School Travel Plan Advisors on a two year bursary.  Their job is to encourage schools to write travel plans.  The financial incentive to take part is substantial, once a school travel plan is completed and approved, primary schools receive £3,750 plus £5 a pupil and secondary schools receive £5,000 plus £5 a pupil.

We are adopting the concept of upgraded school routes to establish 'Safer Routes to Stations'.  Measures will include improved lighting and managed landscaping, to encourage safer access by walking and cycling.

The West Midlands Casualty Reduction Partnership, involving the seven Authorities, Police and Magistrates Courts Committee, has been set up to manage safety (speed and red light enforcement) cameras in our Area.  This is part of the national 'netting off' scheme under which income from penalties is used to operate and maintain safety cameras.  This funding also pays for new safety cameras, mobile camera enforcement and the promotion of speed awareness.  Safety cameras have proved to be effective in saving lives and reducing the number of casualties and more are being installed to cover sites where speeding and red light running is a problem.

A review has led to the removal of 'historic sites' that fail to meet current criteria or which fail to serve a road safety purpose.  Measures are also being taken to improved the credibility and effectiveness of cameras, including:

• Yellow panels on all cameras and cutting back of foliage to improve visibility
• Better signing in advance of cameras, including new reminders of the speed limit
• Improved follow-up of evasive offenders, including home visits by police enquiry officers to pursue those who fail to comply with the legal requirements after an offence
• A publicity drive highlighting the case for safety cameras, including campaigns on television and radio, in printed media and on stadium advertising

The increasing take-up of 'decriminalised parking' powers will enable the Metropolitan Authorities to take over the lead role in the enforcement of traffic regulations from the Police, giving Authorities greater power to improve the efficient and safe use of the road network.

The strategy takes account of the opportunities for partnership working with the Police, the Health Authority and other relevant organisations.  The main thrust of the strategy is direct action, in the form of education, training and publicity, engineering and enforcement is detailed in the following sections.

Education Training and Publicity

We aim to use education, training and publicity, to positively influence and change road user behaviour in order to reduce the number and severity of casualties on the regions roads. We aim to do this through an extensive and innovative programme of measures, targeting particularly the more vulnerable groups of road users.

Road safety is a major health issue that affects every road user.  Whilst travelling upon or crossing roads, everyone is exposed to risk or injury.  Certain groups of road user are inherently more vulnerable, such as the young, the elderly, cyclists, motorcyclists, and young drivers.  People in these groups who live in disadvantaged communities are at even grater risk.  Therefore, our focus is not only those user groups with the highest numbers, but also at those involving the most at risk or the most vulnerable.  As about 95% of all road collisions resulting in personal injury involve an element of human error, the potential contribution that road user education and training can make to casualty reduction is considerable.

Road Safety is, however, no longer solely concerned with casualty reduction but is also about encouraging more sustained forms of transport with particular emphasis on walking and cycling.  We therefore have a duty to encourage and enable all road users to make informed choices of means of travel.

The basic 'service ' provision aims to ensure that:

• Everyone who lives, works or travels in our Area have access to road safety advice and information
• All educational establishments receive regular encouragement to use the relevant advice and resources prepared for them
• The public are made aware of current and new legislation relating to road safety issues

These are of course the basic provisions we will be making.  In order to achieve our set targets of casualty reduction and modal shift, we will be concentrating on more specific areas.  These will include:

• A commitment to target training at young pedestrians.  Training is currently taking place in deprived wards using funding from the DfT.  Unfortunately the funding for this pilot scheme is nearing an end and new funding has to be sought for this excellent initiative to continue
• Cycle training will be offered to primary school children and where funding permits to high school pupils.  We will endeavour wherever possible to work towards the new national standards for cycle training
• A comprehensive programme of road safety work will be offered to all schools in priority areas
• All of the work above will form an integral part of the Safer Routes to school programme and particularly the school travel plan
• School travel plans will continue to be produced using funding from DfT and DfE
• Regional and local publicity campaigns are programmed for vulnerable groups such as young drivers and motorcyclists.  We will also support National campaigns.  There may be a need to for special driving programmes for people licensed in other countries.
• Participation in the West Midlands Driver Improvement Scheme by drivers involved in minor collisions, who would normally be dealt with by the courts, in order to  improve not only their skills but also their hazard awareness and behaviour.  The Driver Improvement Scheme has been awarded Centre of Excellence status for its approach to Road safety.  Approximately 10,000 clients have already passed through the Scheme.

West Midlands Driver Improvement Providers Group

The National Driving Improvement Scheme finds its origins within the Road Traffic Law Review of 1988 (known as the North Report after its author Dr Peter North) from which many of the recommendations were incorporated within the Road Traffic Act 1991.  The North Report identified that:

'It must be in the public interest to rectify a fault rather than punish the transgressor' and that 'the retraining of traffic offenders may lead to an improvement in their driving, particularly if their training is angled towards their failings'.

The opportunity to take part in the scheme is offered to clients who had come to the attention of the police for offences of driving without due care and attention where an accident had occurred.  If they accept and successfully complete the course, no further action is taken.

Virtually all police forces have now adopted the nationally acclaimed scheme, based on the model originated in Devon and Cornwall.  It is common practice for clients who have their accident in another Police Authority area to be offered the choice of undertaking the course nearer to their home.

The Metropolitan Authorities formed a partnership group to deliver the National Driver Improvement Scheme on behalf of the West Midlands Police Force.  The Group is called the West Midlands Driver Improvement Providers Group (WMDIPG).

Dudley Council act as the main point of contact for the Police on behalf of the other six Authorities.  Courses are delivered at locations in all the seven Authority areas.

The strength of the scheme is in enabling the clients to recognise that it is not designed as a punishment but as an opportunity to improve or refresh their driving skills and or modify their attitude towards other road users.

Studies on the effectiveness of the scheme show that those completing the course reduce their chances of being involved in further road collisions.  The vast majority of those who have taken the course comment that they feel that they had benefited from it and often say that everyone should have the opportunity to take it, rather than wait until an incident has been reported.

Each course is held over 1½ days and consists of classroom based activities and in-car training conducted by specially trained Approved Driving Instructors.  There is a fee of £150 payable for the course, which is paid by the client and is designed to be comparable to the fine the client may have incurred at Court.

Centre of Excellence Status Award

We were awarded a Centre of Excellence Award by DfT, as one of the 17 Centres of Excellence, for our approach to Road Safety.  The Road Safety award was in part in respect of the partnership approach to the Driver Improvement Scheme.

On behalf of the Group, Dudley Council have developed a web based database which will enable all our partners to directly access the database to be able to verify the status of their clients.  This will be available 24 hours per day, 7 days a week .  A great help for the Police given their shift working arrangements.

During 2004 the WMDIPG processed 1,580 clients.

Engineering

Where new works are to be undertaken on the highway, for example new developments or improvement schemes, development control powers and safety audits will be used to avoid the introduction of safety problems, and to identify safety improvement opportunities.

On the existing highway network, the Local Safety Schemes Programmes will continue to form an essential part of the strategy.  The effectiveness of these low-cost engineering-based schemes, designed specifically to tackle identified traffic accident problems, is well established.  Such schemes involve the use of measures such as improvements to traffic signs, road markings and street lighting, the provision of anti-skid surfacing, facilities for pedestrians and cyclists, junction improvements and traffic calming measures.

A parallel initiative for improving safety is employed to address accidents too widely scattered for such treatments.  Local Area Safety Schemes are designed primarily to achieve casualty reduction, however, they take a more holistic approach.  This involves overlaying strategies for casualty reduction with safer routes to school, walking (including routes to key destinations and key stops on public transport routes), cycling (cycle routes and facilities), public transport provision, speed management, freight access, etc.  These are underpinned by appropriate road safety education, training, and publicity.

In Birmingham, it is proposed to move towards incorporating Local Area Safety Schemes into the innovative Integrated Local Area Initiative.  Safety will form part of an integrated local plan for meeting the transport needs of local communities.  Consultation will provide the basic mechanism for determining the needs and concerns of the local community, and empowering the local people to shape their neighbourhood, with the support of technical expertise from council officers from a range of disciplines together with the involvement of other agencies.  A framework of overlapping themes will facilitate the consultation, and help to identify physical measures and education, training and publicity needs:

• Safer Local Centres
• Safer Living Streets
• Safer Movement (walking, cycling, safer routes to school, control of through traffic, speed limits)
• Safer Access (to job opportunities, retail, leisure and community facilities)

Enforcement and Speed Management

Enforcement activity will be centred on the West Midlands Casualty Reduction Partnership.  The partnership, established in October 2002, is responsible for the maintenance and operation of fixed and mobile speed and red-light enforcement cameras in the Metropolitan Area, operating under the Government’s cost recovery system.  The Partnership comprises the seven Metropolitan Authorities with the West Midlands Police and the West Midlands Magistrates Courts Committee.

The Partnership has set an ambitious target of reducing the number of people killed and seriously injured in road collisions by at least 300 in the first five years of operation through the enforcement of speed limits and traffic signals using camera technology.

Speed is a key safety issue.  Excessive and inappropriate speed is a major contributory factor in around one third of traffic accidents and a key factor in the severity of injuries sustained.  As well as making a significant contribution to maintaining the downward trend for KSIs, it is anticipated that the increased enforcement activity will have a significant impact on slight casualty numbers and trends.

Speed is also a key issue for the wider local transport plan, with implications for regeneration, the economy, social inclusion and quality of life, health and the environment, for example:

• Speed management can contribute to a safer, more pleasant environment
• The faster the traffic on the roads, the more dangerous and otherwise unpleasant the road environment becomes for other road users
• Reliable journey times are important for bus operation for supporting existing patronage and in encouraging modal change
• Reliable journey times are important for lorry movements in supporting modern industry

Speed management will necessarily form part of many of the other linked strategies in the LTP2, such as walking, cycling, freight and public transport.  In this strategy for improving safety, effort will be concentrated on the following:

• The education of existing and future drivers, together with publicity of the dangers of speeding
• Utilising speed limits and traffic calming techniques in local safety schemes and local area safety schemes to encouraging drivers to travel at speeds appropriate to the circumstances and conditions
• Utilising the results of pilot studies and research, such as the Home Zones project and the creation of a hierarchy of roads by usage, together with future guidance, such as the proposed revised guidance on setting local speed limits

Targets

We have set ourselves challenging road casualty reduction targets for the LTP2 period:

• 40% reduction in all KSIs from the 1994-98 average to 2010 and a 30% reduction from 2004 to 2010
• 50% reduction in child KSIs from the 1994-98 average to 2010 and a 35% reduction between the 2002-04 average and the 2008-10 average

• 10% reduction in slight casualties from 2004 to 2010

Progress towards these casualty reduction targets will be monitored and reviewed in the Annual Progress Report, together with the Best Value Performance Indicators for improving safety.

Projects and Programme

Each Authority will build its own programme of engineering measures aimed at the targets and continuing with principles set out earlier.  Annual monitoring will be undertaken in April for previous calendar year.