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Road hazard app to be developed

12 May 2013|3,150 views

An application is being developed by transport experts that allows road users to share information about road hazards.

Transport experts are developing an app that allows road users to share information about potential dangers in specific areas of Singapore.

Prof Chin said that road users will be able to raise awareness without the fear of prosecution as their information will only be used for research purposes to help other road users

Motorists, pedestrians and cyclists who spot any hazards will be able to report them on the app and these will then be rated to give an indication of how serious the risks are. A publicly accessible risk map will then be created to allow people to plan their routes better.

Director of Safety Studies Initiative at the National University of Singapore, Associate Professor Chin Hoong Chor, who is helping to develop the app, said these road users are best placed to raise awareness of any dangers.

Statistics from the Traffic Police showed that there were 7,168 accidents involving fatalities and injuries last year. There were 169 deaths among these.

While this was the lowest figure in the last five years, Prof Chin pointed out that these are only those reported to the Traffic Police.

"There are other collisions reported only to insurers and others not reported at all. The perception of congestion is clear, people can see the cars jammed. They will choose alternative routes, but people don't have the perception of safety," Prof Chin added.

Government efforts to improve road safety are also being intensified.

The information provided by the riders is plotted onto a Google map, which is accessible through their blogs

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) said last week that it will be intensifying efforts by embarking on a safety audit to tackle locations with high accident rates following a recent spate of road deaths.

The LTA's road engineering division is also looking to lower the threshold for marking a place as a black spot or accident prone area.

Meanwhile a group of riders from the 'lovecyclingsg' group have flagged out around 30 other spots as 'dangerous'.

These riders inform founders Taiwoon Woon and Francis Chu of areas posing hazards to cyclists, such as heavy vehicles and fast traffic, and plot the information on a map.

Explaining the rationale of such a map, Mr Chu - who is also the director of a bike share company - said, "One of the biggest priorities in keeping ourselves safe and avoiding accidents is planning our routes properly. Sometimes the roads on the map look friendly to cyclists, but the ground conditions may be different."

Transport experts are developing an app that allows road users to share information about potential dangers in specific areas of Singapore.

Motorists, pedestrians and cyclists who spot any hazards will be able to report them on the app and these will then be rated to give an indication of how serious the risks are. A publicly accessible risk map will then be created to allow people to plan their routes better.

Director of Safety Studies Initiative at the National University of Singapore, Associate Professor Chin Hoong Chor, who is helping to develop the app, said these road users are best placed to raise awareness of any dangers.

Statistics from the Traffic Police showed that there were 7,168 accidents involving fatalities and injuries last year. There were 169 deaths among these.

While this was the lowest figure in the last five years, Prof Chin pointed out that these are only those reported to the Traffic Police.

"There are other collisions reported only to insurers and others not reported at all. The perception of congestion is clear, people can see the cars jammed. They will choose alternative routes, but people don't have the perception of safety," Prof Chin added.

Government efforts to improve road safety are also being intensified.

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) said last week that it will be intensifying efforts by embarking on a safety audit to tackle locations with high accident rates following a recent spate of road deaths.

The LTA's road engineering division is also looking to lower the threshold for marking a place as a black spot or accident prone area.

Meanwhile a group of riders from the 'lovecyclingsg' group have flagged out around 30 other spots as 'dangerous'.

These riders inform founders Taiwoon Woon and Francis Chu of areas posing hazards to cyclists, such as heavy vehicles and fast traffic, and plot the information on a map.

Explaining the rationale of such a map, Mr Chu - who is also the director of a bike share company - said, "One of the biggest priorities in keeping ourselves safe and avoiding accidents is planning our routes properly. Sometimes the roads on the map look friendly to cyclists, but the ground conditions may be different."