Citation

Choueiri EM, Choueiri GM, Choueiri BM. Adv. Transp. Stud. 2007; 11: 75-91.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2007, Arcane Publishers)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Within smaller areas, different parts of a country, or between countries, safe travel and transport should generally be enabled by roads with good facilities. Roads should therefore allow, under environmentally friendly and safe conditions, low transport cost journey times, as well as good transport quality and accessibility, and be of good quality nationwide. In all road network activities, safety and all other objectives should be taken into account. Road management and development (operation, maintenance, construction, design, and planning) should aim at, within prevailing budget constraints, optimum balance achievement. What has become clear in many nations over the past few decades is that the best answer to traffic problems, including growth, maybe not always be simply constructing more and more roads. In several Western European countries, for instance, emphasis is moving toward using existing road networks as best possible, with priority given to sites with the worst environmental problems, congestion, and/or accidents. Several countries recognize that: focus, in respect to local streets and roads, should be directed toward road safety improvements designed for vulnerable road user protection, such as cyclists and pedestrians, traffic calming measures, and coordinated planning; focus should be better directed towards demand and traffic management, as well as targeted safety improvement programs; and accident risk and severity can be reduced through good traffic and road engineering. The overall road safety situation in Lebanon is poor. Compared to countries with good road safety records, actual casualty numbers are high in relation to motor vehicle ownership and inhabitant numbers. The authors aim, through available accident statistics, to identify and analyze Lebanese road safety problems. Due to a lack of detailed road accident information and underreporting, it should be noted that, in this respect, detailed analysis in respect to circumstances surrounding accidents are not allowed through present accident statistics. The authors also aim to analyze and identify safety deficiencies of Lebanese non-urban roads, and develop safety improvement guidelines and proposals for these roads.