LTA Introduces New Initiatives To Enhance Road
Safety
1. Motorists and pedestrians
alike will benefit from a series of new initiatives to enhance road
safety, as outlined in the recently unveiled Land Transport
Masterplan.
2. The four initiatives,
namely the 'enhanced pedestrian crossing lines', 'pedestrian
crossing ahead markings', 'traffic calming markings' and 'your
speed sign', have been implemented at selected locations to test
their effectiveness. This is part of LTA's continual efforts to
make our roads safer for all users. If found to be effective, the
pilot initiatives will be implemented at more sites. (Please refer
to Annex
A for details.)
Enhanced Pedestrian Crossing Lines
(EPCL)
3. Dashed lines, instead of a
continuous straight line, have been implemented at selected
pedestrian crossings, to make the designated crossing more obvious.
Motorists have been observed to overshoot the continuous white stop
line and sometimes even encroach into the designated pedestrian
crossing, thus endangering pedestrians. Currently, about 20% of
vehicles have been observed to overshoot the stop line.
4. If the pilot is successful,
LTA would consider implementing the initiative island-wide at all
signalised pedestrian crossings. Driver behaviour will be surveyed
during the pilot to monitor the effectiveness of the dashed lines.
This initiative has also been implemented in cities such as
Brisbane, Australia and London, United Kingdom, where it has shown
good results.
Pedestrian Crossing Ahead Markings
(PCAM)
5. Motorists have been
observed not to give way to pedestrians at zebra crossings that are
located after a bend, despite advance warnings provided by existing
safety features such as signboards, zig-zag lines and flashing
beacons with black/yellow poles on site.
6. The proposed Pedestrian
Crossing Ahead Markings are one form of advanced road markings used
to enhance the safety of pedestrians at zebra crossings. The
markings are similar to 'Give Way' signs as they are triangular in
shape and are marked in white for heightened visibility. They come
in pairs, with the second marking serving as a reminder in case
motorists miss the first PCAM.
7. If the pilot is successful,
the markings would be implemented at locations where motorists have
reduced visibility due to curves or bends in the road.
Traffic Calming Markings
(TCM)
8. 'Traffic calming markings'
consist of a series of paired white triangles which gives motorists
the impression that the road is narrower. They serve as traffic
calming markings to slow motorists down and complement existing
traffic calming measures such as slow markings, humps and speed
regulating strips.
9. The Cornwall County Council
and Scotland in the UK use similar markings which are usually
applied along rural roads before speed change gateways. Research by
Transportation Research Laboratory (TRL) has proven that such
markings are effective in reducing the mean speeds of vehicles by 8
to 11 kph.
10. LTA plans to extend the
measure to locations where there are recurrent speeding problems,
if the pilot is successful.
Your Speed Sign
(YSS)
11. Your Speed Sign' is a
dynamic electronic device that displays the real time speeds of
vehicles and alerts motorists that they are speeding. It serves to
encourage motorists to obey the speed limit displayed, thereby
enhancing safety on the roads.
12. In the past five years,
the UK, USA and Korea have been using YSS and many of their
before-and-after studies have shown positive results that such
signs are effective in reducing motorists' speeds.
Pilot
Initiatives
13. The LTA will monitor the
pilot initiatives for a period of six months to evaluate their
effectiveness. Before-and-after studies as well as perception
surveys with motorists and road users will be carried out as part
of the evaluation process.
14. Dr Chin Kian Keong, Chief
Engineer, Transportation, at LTA, said , "We hope that these new
initiatives will make our roads even safer for users. However, even
as we continue to improve the physical infrastructure, we want to
encourage motorists to practise safe driving behaviour on our roads
to ensure safety for all road users.
15. Deputy Assistant
Commissioner of Police (DAC) Christopher Ng, Commander, Traffic
Police (TP) said, "TP is pleased with the road engineering
initiatives introduced and will continue to work together with LTA,
through education, enforcement and engineering, to enhance the
safety of road users."
16. Members of the public may
obtain information on all four pilot initiatives on the
ONE.MOTORING website. Residents who live within 400m of the pilot
locations will receive leaflets informing them of these
initiatives. This is to help these residents be familiar with the
new road markings and signs.