The practice of road safety audits

Abstract

In recent years, road safety audits have been introduced in a number of countries as a proactive means of improving road safety and rectifying potential safety deficiencies on the road. In contrast to the usual accident investigation procedure that is undertaken after crashes are observed, road safety audits seek to identify safety problems prior to crash occurrence and even before the road project is completed. This paper presents a brief history of the development in the practice of safety audits and outlines the common procedure undertaken in such audits. The benefits and liability concerns associated with such audits are also discussed. The paper also describes a methodology of risk assessment not found in the most manuals on road safety audits.