SMART RRS

Innovative concepts for smart road restraint systems to provide greater safety for vulnerable road users

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 Obiettivo del progetto (Objective)

'Recent figures from WHO and ETSC reveal frightening statistics on road traffic accidents across Europe and beyond • 1.2 million people worldwide are killed in road crashes each year with up to 43,000 dying in Europe • Up to 50 million are injured with at least 600,000 hospital admissions on a European level directly attributed to road traffic accidents. This costs European society approximately 160 billion euro and uses up 10% of all health care resources • With increased mobilization, these figures will increase by about 65% over the next 20 years unless there is new commitment to prevention. • This would mean that by 2020 road traffic injuries will be the third leading contributor to the global burden of disease and injury. – World Report on Road Traffic Injury Prevention [WHO, 2004] Report on European Road Transport Safety [Prof. Mackay, ETSC, 2000] Many injuries and deaths are a result of impacts with current road restraint systems especially in the case of vulnerable road users such as motorcyclists, cyclists and passengers where impacts with supports or edges usually result in amputations or sectioning of torsos in a guillotine effect. Furthermore once an accident has occurred; the time between the impact and receiving immediate initial first aid can be crucial; delays in alerting emergency services or incorrect location information given to emergency can cause waste life saving moments for injured people or even result in emergency services going to the wrong location of the accident. This project will develop a new smart road restraint system that will reduce the number of deaths and injuries caused in road traffic accidents by integrating primary and tertiary sensor systems in a new RRS system; providing greater protection to all road users, alerting motorists and emergency services of danger so as to prevent accidents happening, and alerting them of accidents as they happen to maximise response time to the exact location of the incident.'

Introduzione (Teaser)

As more drivers take to the road, the number of traffic accidents is expected to continue to rise and further burden our health care system. A fresh approach to roadside infrastructure may hold the key to meeting this challenge.

Descrizione progetto (Article)

Increased mobility is an indicator of a better quality of life, but it can come at a cost when lives are lost on the road. Motorcyclists and cyclists are particularly vulnerable to injury, especially when accidents involve roadside barriers.

Significant European funding is being directed towards improving these so-called road restraint systems (RRS). The Smart RRS project looked at how technology can be employed to increase road safety.

The first step involved analysing data from accidents involving RRS, examining what body parts are most often affected, the role that speed and angle of impact play, and so on. This was complemented by an investigation of the current standards governing RRS as well as the latest advances in motorist safety technologies.

Armed with this knowledge, the Smart RRS participants have begun designing and constructing different prototypes. Computer-based models are helping identify which materials and profiles deliver the best performance. Primary and tertiary sensors are also being developed that will, in addition to other functions, alert emergency services to the exact location of accidents in order to reduce response time.

Care is being taken to ensure that the Smart RRS can be easily integrated into existing road infrastructure, that production and maintenance costs are minimised and, above all, that the system is robust and reliable. Its ability to better safeguard road users will be evaluated through on-road tests.