KiwiRAP

The safe road system

Road safety can be considered through a Safe System approach. This looks at the entire road system: roads and roadsides, speeds, vehicles and road use.

To effectively increase road safety requires improvements in all four elements of the system: safer drivers in safer vehicles on safer roads, travelling at safe speeds. Reasonably objective and accepted measures are currently available to help define what constitutes a ‘safe driver’ and a ‘safe vehicle’.

Safe road users are skilled and competent, alert and unimpaired. They comply with road rules, take steps to improve safety, and demand and expect safety improvements. Safe vehicles equipped with additional safety features—such as electronic stability control—prevent crashes and protect road users, including pedestrians and cyclists, in the event of a crash.

Similar to KiwiRAP’s assessment of the road and roadsides, the Australasian New Car Assessment Programme (ANCAP) crash-tests vehicles and assigns a Star Rating out of five – the more ANCAP stars, the safer the vehicle.

Safe speeds suit the function and the road’s level of safety, taking into consideration other factors such as weather conditions. Drivers understand and comply with the speed limits and drive to the conditions.

KiwiRAP provides a systematic and internationally recognised way of measuring what constitutes a safe road. By giving New Zealand’s roads a safety rating, KiwiRAP will be able to communicate the risk of death and injury more meaningfully. It will help drivers understand how risk can vary according to changes in the road environment. A risk-aware driver will be more likely to adapt their driving to reduce their risk of being involved in a crash.