Academic literature on the topic 'Traffic engineering Victoria Nunawading'

To understand where driver training should focus to contribute to improving the safety of cyclists, this study compared bicycle-motor-vehicle (BMV) crashes involving novice drivers (under 25 years) with those involving experienced drivers in the Australian states of Victoria, Queensland, and South Australia. Novice drivers were involved in only a small proportion of BMV crashes and were not over-represented on a per-license basis. For both driver groups, most crashes happened on lower speed roads, at intersections, and during the day. In contrast to expectations, the distribution of types of BMV crashes differed little between experienced and novice drivers. The absence of major differences between experienced and novice drivers may result from learning opportunities being too infrequent in low-volume cycling countries, but this hypothesis needs further testing. A comparison between Queensland and Victoria showed three situations with a higher proportion of young driver crashes: in the evening in both states, Right through-opposing directions (Victoria only), and From footway-maneuvering (Queensland only). These patterns are likely to be indicative of young driver experiences. When their time on the road increases, so does their exposure to risk and to challenging driving conditions (e.g., driving in darkness). On the other hand, these patterns may also point to effects of legislation on young driver crashes, for instance cycling on the sidewalk in Queensland. The results suggest that training for novice drivers needs to supplement a wider strategy to improve cyclist safety (including infrastructure and traffic management improvements) and that training needs to be tailored to state-specific conditions.

Walking, cycling, and feeder bus/tram for first- and last-mile (FLM) train access are often considered to have better health benefits, lower cost, and less environmental impacts than driving. However, little is known about the road safety impacts of these FLM access modes, particularly at a network level. This paper aims to investigate the impacts of train commuters’ access modes on road safety in Victoria, Australia. Macroscopic analyses of crash outcomes in each zone (i.e., Statistical Area Level 1) were performed using negative binomial (NB) and spatially lagged X negative binomial (SLXNB), accounting for potential indirect effects of mode shares in adjacent zones. This macroscopic analysis approach enabled the consideration of the safety effects across the network. The results showed that the SLXNB models outperformed the NB models. Commuting by train, either with walking or car as FLM access mode, was negatively associated with both total and severe crashes. In addition, commuting by train with feeder bus/tram access mode was negatively associated with severe crashes. Interestingly, commuting by train with cycling access mode was negatively associated with total crashes, with a larger effect when compared to walking and car access modes. Overall, the results suggested promoting active transport as FLM train access mode would lead to an improvement in road safety.

Road traffic injuries are a leading cause of morbidity and mortality globally. Understanding circumstances leading to road traffic injury is crucial to improve road safety, and implement countermeasures to reduce the incidence and severity of road trauma. We aimed to characterise crash characteristics of road traffic collisions in Victoria, Australia, and to examine the relationship between crash characteristics and fault attribution. Data were extracted from the Victorian State Trauma Registry for motor vehicle drivers, motorcyclists, pedal cyclists and pedestrians with a no-fault compensation claim, aged > = 16 years and injured 2010–2016. People with intentional injury, serious head injury, no compensation claim/missing injury event description or who died < = 12-months post-injury were excluded, resulting in a sample of 2,486. Text mining of the injury event using QDA Miner and Wordstat was used to classify crash circumstances for each road user group. Crashes in which no other was at fault included circumstances involving lost control or avoiding a hazard, mechanical failure or medical conditions. Collisions in which another was predominantly at fault occurred at intersections with another vehicle entering from an adjacent direction, and head-on collisions. Crashes with higher prevalence of unknown fault included multi-vehicle collisions, pedal cyclists injured in rear-end collisions, and pedestrians hit while crossing the road or navigating slow traffic areas. We discuss several methods to promote road safety and to reduce the incidence and severity of road traffic injuries. Our recommendations take into consideration the incidence and impact of road trauma for different types of road users, and include engineering and infrastructure controls through to interventions targeting or accommodating human behaviour.

This paper presents the results of full-scale tests performed at the Colquitz River Bridge near Victoria, British Columbia (B.C.), Canada, during September 1992 to determine the dynamic characteristics of the structure. The five-span bridge was completed in 1954 and is part of the Trans-Canada Highway. It is 82.68 m long and 11.89 m wide, and has six continuous steel girders supporting a 175 mm thick concrete deck. This particular bridge was chosen for testing because of its typical nature of many B.C. bridges, its location in an area of high seismic risk, and its excellent site accessibility. The tests included extensive measurements of ambient vibrations induced by traffic and other sources to determine the dynamic characteristics of the bridge. The most significant vertical and lateral mode shapes and associated periods of vibration were determined from vibration measurements at more than 50 different locations of the deck, piers, and abutments. Although a large amount of data were collected, they were quickly processed and analyzed with an innovative system developed at The University of British Columbia. One of the important features of this system is that it permits the identification of the principal modes of vibration immediately after the data have been collected. In addition to the ambient vibration tests, quick release pullback tests were conducted to verify modal frequencies determined from the ambient vibration tests and to determine the damping of the fundamental modes. These tests consisted of loading the bridge at a selected location with a force of about 90 kN and then releasing this load very quickly to induce free vibrations. The information obtained from the field tests was used to refine a computer finite element model of the bridge, which, in turn, was used to gain insight into the dynamic behaviour of specific components of the bridge. Further, this information was used later by the bridge owner to evaluate the bridge's expected response during an earthquake. Key words: steel bridges, dynamic response, full-scale tests.