Utvärderingsinstrument för uppföljning av system- och säkerhetseffekter av trafiksäkerhetsåtgärder i tätort : tillämpade i Storuman

Sammanfattning: The purpose of this licentiate thesis has been to describe a range of traffic safety measures and their effect on safety. Another objective has been to study when and where different evaluation tools are useful for collecting data on traffic safety in urban areas. System effects as well as point effects are discussed. System effects are defined in this thesis as the effects of the reconstruction on the whole traffic system and the users of it. That includes effects at locations away from the implementation. System effects are also created by several measures being installed in series. The combined effect, the synergy effect, may be different from the sum of the individual effects. A literature review was conducted which focused on describing today's knowledge with respect to traffic-safety measures, system effects, measuring methods and evaluation tools. Practical experiments were carried out using different evaluation instruments in before and after studies in connection to a reconstruction project in Storuman. Hypotheses regarding effects were formulated and tested. The review covers planning tools and a section where seventeen different physical speed reducing devices are described and their known effects on safety are presented. A section on system effects and a summary table describing the functions of the measures conclude the review. Besides these studies, twelve evaluation tools have been compared. The tools are used to evaluate the safety effects of reconstructions and installations of specific measures. A case study has been performed for Storuman. The goal has been to determine how system and safety implications ought to be studied. Several of the tools found in the review of literature were used. Physical measures were implemented in Storuman with the goal to improve safety, comfort and mobility for pedestrians and bicyclists. Thirteen hypotheses were formulated for the Storuman reconstruction. These include changes in flow volumes and speeds in the surrounding network, changes in where pedestrians and bicyclists cross the road, changes in perceived safety and mobility for pedestrians and bicyclists and modal choice modifications among school children. The following tools were used in Storuman: Automatic counts of bicycle volumes, automatic flow and speed measurements including classification by vehicle type, video analyses, behavioral studies using the BARNVIS methodology, speed profiles obtained through car-following measurements, corridor filming, questionnaires and interviews, radar measurements of speeds, expert questionnaire based on WALCYNG Quality Scheme (WQS) for safety assessment and traffic-network analyses based on Lugna Gatan methodology. Some of the tools necessitated measurements along whole corridors whereas other tools could be used only at specific spots. Location specific tools were used at eight sites in Storuman. Traffic-safety measures were implemented at these locations and the tools were applied before and after these implementations. The knowledge gained from these practical experiments are summarized in the thesis. Data from using four of the evaluation tools have been applied in the testing of the hypotheses. These are: automatic flow and speed measurements including classification of motor vehicle types, video analysis, school questionnaires and interviews with road users