Intersections under scrutiny

A 178-page report released recently by Government road agency consortium Austroads targets road intersections and how they may be improved to better accommodate the requirements of heavy vehicles, thereby enhancing road safety.

The report, titled Road Design for Heavy Vehicles, acknowledges that current road design criteria often make little or no allowance for heavy vehicles. With this in mind the study aims to update this criteria with the needs of all road users – including those of trucks and other heavy vehicles – firmly in mind.

More specifically, the report's authors say the aim of the study is to "update design criteria for intersections to allow appropriate opportunities for heavy vehicle entry and to investigate gap acceptance behaviour of heavy vehicle drivers", and to "identify improvements in the current road design standards that will more safely accommodate heavy vehicle movements into the future".

The study analysed medium-rigid, heavy-rigid, semi-trailer, truck-trailer and B-double vehicle formats across eight intersections, along with crash analysis data and the varying geometric features of an intersection that influence heavy vehicle access.

Investigative work was carried out in the study for both Australia and New Zealand, with stakeholder consultation spanning a series of workshops and surveys. Commonly raised issues included signage visibility geared only towards car drivers, lane widths, unsealed shoulders, uncertainty concerning advisory road speed signs for heavy vehicles, roadside hazards, and overtaking lanes of an insufficient length or width. The difficulties of negotiating smaller roundabouts in heavy vehicles and the pressing need for more heavy-vehicle stopping areas was also raised.

While admitting that further research and investigation is needed, the report makes dozens of recommendations to amend the current Austroads Guide to Road Design to improve road safety for heavy vehicles.

The report's recommendations will now go before the Austroads Road Design Task Force, which will critically review the suggested amendments as part of its periodic review of the Guide to Road Design.

To view the report for yourself, click here.