Abstracto

Evaluation and treatment of accident black spots using Geographic Information System

Liyamol Isen , Shibu. A, Saran M. S

The location in a road where highest number of traffic accidents occurs is called a Black Spot. The recent study conducted by the Kerala Road Safety Authority (KRSA) found that, the maximum numbers of accident-prone stretches or the black spots are in Alappuzha district. In traditional identification of black spots, methodologies developed based on the total number of accidents occurred in that particular location. These criteria do not provide consideration to the road improvements and result in misidentification of locations that are not truly hazardous from the road safety perspective. The present study attempts to identify the most vulnerable accident black spots in Alappuzha district using Geographic Information System. The study includes collection of secondary accident data and prioritizing the accident prone locations by using Weighted Severity Index (WSI) method. WSI method follows a system of assigning scores based on the number and severity of accidents in that particular location in the last three years. The evaluation of six identified black spots in Alappuzha district was done using ARCGIS 10.1 software package by incorporating field survey data.