In a move prompted by the recent spate of road deaths, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) is intensifying efforts to tackle locations with high accident rates.
LTA Group Director of Road Operations, Dr Chin Kian Keong, told The Straits Times that the LTA will soon embark on a safety audit of Singapore roads, starting with expressways.
An international agency, the International Road Assessment Programme, co-sponsored by the World Health Organisation (WHO), will carry out the audit, which is estimated to cost almost $1 million.
Meanwhile, the LTA's road engineering division is looking to lower the threshold for marking a place as a black spot or accident prone area. It is eyeing a limit of 12 serious accidents (involving injury or death) in a three-year period, instead of the current 15.
The scheme helps the LTA identify risks in Singapore's 3,400km road network, and make infrastructural changes when necessary. Since its start in 2005, the LTA has identified about 100 black spots.
One example is the Woodlands Avenue 7 and Gambas Avenue junction, where a signalised right turn was introduced. The number of accidents fell from 14 to four in 27 months.
A black spot label will be removed when accident rates fall below the threshold in the following three years.
Dr Chin said that the LTA takes both a reactive and proactive approach to road safety. It has an independent team of 12 officers, led by qualified safety engineers, who comb the 645km network of arterial roads for shortcomings and make about 25 recommendations a year. According to Dr Chin, these are then "prioritised according to criticality".
"Each year, they cover about 70km, day and night. After walking, they drive through to get the motorist's perspective," said Dr Chin.
The public has also been roped in to help improve road safety. In 2011, the LTA introduced a 'Snap and Send' scheme for people to send in photos they have taken of flaws, such as potholes. The LTA receives about 200 such snapshots a month.
"But engineering improvement is not the be all and end all. Studies have shown that 80 to 90 percent of road accidents are caused by the driver," added Dr Chin.
On the other hand, veteran Transport Consultant Bruno Wildermuth feels that more can be done, especially in attitudes towards pedestrians.
"Pedestrians are generally considered a nuisance here. Compared to Champs-Elysees in Paris or Bahnhof Strasse in Zurich, Orchard Road is easily the world's most pedestrian-unfriendly shopping street," he said.
