Unclear traffic signs, poor lane markings, poor road surfaces and bad road design can be dangerous, to give just a few infrastructure-related examples. Improvements in the design, construction and maintenance of our road infrastructure can significantly improve road safety.
Roads designed to minimise bottlenecks and to ensure better traffic flow, as well as reducing roadside hazards, can have a major impact on safety. Cleverly-designed infrastructure that encourages sensible, attentive driving will also reduce accidents.
Replacing traffic signals with roundabouts significantly improves the safety of road junctions, for instance. Urban planning must also take road safety considerations into account.
The quality of roads is another vital element of road safety. Road surfaces of poor quality, or that are deteriorating, can damage vehicles and put road users at risk. The type of road also plays an important role: Europe’s fastest roads – expressways with multiple lanes – are statistically the safest, while single carriageways (two-lane motorways) tend to be the most dangerous.
