Accident; analysis and prevention
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Canada's freight rail system moves 70% of the country's surface goods and almost half of all exports (RAC, 2016). These include dangerous goods. Anonymous survey of freight rail operating employees conducted by the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC, 2014) revealed that many do not report getting enough sleep because of their work schedules, and that fatigue may be affecting their performance at work. ⋯ Exploration of accident themes suggests that management of fatigue and shift scheduling in the freight rail industry is a complex issue that is often not conducive to employee circadian rhythms and sleep requirements. It also suggests that current shift scheduling and fatigue management practices may be insufficient to mitigate the associated safety risk. Railway fatigue management systems that are based on the principles of modern sleep science are needed to improve scheduling practices and mitigate the ongoing safety risk.
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Interaction is the process of behavior adaption between two or more participants primarily based on what they visually perceive. It is an important aspect of traffic participation and supports a safe and efficient flow of traffic. However, prior driving simulator studies investigating the effects of vision impairment have typically used pre-programmed pedestrians that did not interact with the human driver. In the current study we used a linked pedestrian and driving simulator setting to increase the ecological validity of the experimental paradigm. We evaluated the effects of mild vision loss on interactions between drivers and human-controlled, interactive pedestrians compared to preprogrammed, non-interactive pedestrians. ⋯ Mild vision impairment (slightly worse than the common 20/40 requirement for driving) had little effect on interactions with pedestrians once they were detected and only had mild adverse consequences on driving safety. Time series measures were sensitive to differences in behavior adaption between road users depending on the level of interaction and type of crossing situation.
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In previous studies, the safety-in-numbers effect has been found, which is a phenomenon that when the number of pedestrians or cyclists increases, their crash rates decrease. The previous studies used data from highly populated areas. It is questionable that the safety-in-numbers effect is still observed in areas with a low population density and small number of pedestrians. ⋯ Therefore, it is plausible to provide safe walking environment first with proven countermeasures and a people-oriented policy rather than motor-oriented. After safe walking environments are guaranteed and when people recognize that walking is safe, more people will consider walking for short-distance trips. Eventually, increased pedestrian activities will result in the safety-in-numbers effects and walking will be even further safer.
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A novel bicycle helmet concept has been developed to mitigate rotational head acceleration, which is a predominant mechanism of traumatic brain injury (TBI). This WAVECEL concept employs a collapsible cellular structure that is recessed within the helmet to provide a rotational suspension. This cellular concept differs from other bicycle helmet technologies for mitigation of rotational head acceleration, such as the commercially available Multi-Directional Impact Protection System (MIPS) technology which employs a slip liner to permit sliding between the helmet and the head during impact. This study quantified the efficacy of both, the WAVECEL cellular concept, and a MIPS helmet, in direct comparison to a traditional bicycle helmet made of rigid expanded polystyrene (EPS). ⋯ Results of this study are limited to a narrow range of impact conditions, but demonstrated the potential that rotational acceleration and the associated brain injury risk can be significantly reduced by the cellular WAVECEL concept or a MIPS slip liner. Results obtained under specific impact angles and impact velocities indicated performance differences between these mechanisms. These differences emphasize the need for continued research and development efforts toward helmet technologies that further improve protection from brain injury over a wide range a realistic impact parameters.
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Negotiations among drivers and pedestrians are common on roads, but it is still challenging for a self-driving vehicle to negotiate for its right of way with other human road users, especially pedestrians. Currently, the self-driving vehicles are programmed for conservative behavior, yielding to approaching pedestrians. Consequently, the future urban traffic will slow down significantly. ⋯ Simulation results show an overall improvement in the waiting time of vehicles and thus in the intersection throughput, compared to conservative vehicle behavior. The simulation results show also that the benefit of reduced waiting times for vehicles comes at the cost of some waiting time for pedestrians. However, the observed pedestrian waiting times in this model are not more than the generally accepted waiting times reported in empirical studies.