Effect of speed humps on injury consequences on trunk roads traversing towns in Ghana: A quasi-experimental study

Abstract

BackgroundSpeed calming interventions have been employed globally as a road safety measure to curb outcomes of RTCs such as injuries and deaths. In Ghana, few studies have reported on the effect of speed calming measures on the severity of road traffic injuries. This study examined the effect of speed humps on the severity of injuries during RTCs on trunk roads passing through towns in Ghana from 2011 to 2020.MethodsThe study employed a quasi-experimental before-and-after study with controls design to answer the research questions. The study used both primary and secondary sources of data. Univariable and multivariable ordered logistic regression was used to examine the effect of speed humps on the severity of injuries during RTCs.ResultsThe mean height, length and spacing of the speed humps were 10.9 cm, 7.67 m and 207.17 m, respectively. Fatal/serious/minor injuries were 35% higher at the intervention than the control settlements prior to installation of speed humps though not significant (adjusted OR (aOR)=1.35, 95% CI 0.85 to 2.14). A significant change in injury severity occurred after the installation of the speed hump devices. There was a reduction of 77% in fatal/serious/minor injuries at the intervention towns compared with the control towns (aOR=0.23, 95% CI 0.11 to 0.47).ConclusionThe findings present evidence suggesting that speed hump is an effective road safety measure in reducing the severity of road traffic injuries on trunk roads.

The safety effect of increased pedestrian protection, autonomous emergency braking for pedestrians and bicyclists on passenger cars, and speed management

“…However, when pedestrian and cyclist crashes was studied separately, only non-significant reductions of crashes were found. In a recent before-and after study of speed bumps in 50 km/h speed zones in Ghana, an overall reduction of 77% of police reported injury crashes was observed (Gyaase et al, 2023). The present study observed significant reductions in injury severity for both bicyclists and pedestrians, results that add new knowledge to this field of research.…”

“We are pleading for the government to do more”: Road user perspectives on the magnitude, contributing factors, and potential solutions to road traffic injuries and deaths in Ghana

“…Existing measures, especially speed-related, are questioned for their effectiveness and suitability in prior literature. Despite studies showing speed bumps reduce injuries and deaths [26,53,60], excessive speeding remains common [61] due to ad hoc implementation based on varying factors rather than standardized guidelines [26,62]. Consequently, reports of poor road safety measures and their negative effects have led to speed bump relocation or removal on major roads [27,52] and calls for speed calming measures to be restricted to residential streets, rather than high-speed arterial roads [26,63].…”

“…Proposed solutions align with global evidence-based practices including traffic calming [60,67], improved road designs [40,68], warning signs about hazards [69], roadside and central barrier systems [70,71], and the separation of road users such as pedestrians [72][73][74], cyclists [75][76][77], and motorcycle occupants [78,79]. The socioeconomic environment solutions addressed prehospital care, crucial for minimizing crash-related harm [80].…”

Impacto de lombadas e travessias elevadas na velocidade de veículos de passeio baseado em dados naturalísticos

“…Chandra, Begum and Sekhar (2022) observed that for SB with a parabolic design the vehicle speed at the crown of the SB presented great values (13 to 28 km/h) than for those with circular design (5 to 21 km/h). Reduction in crashes was also a well established point regarding SB implementation (Gyaase et al, 2023).…”