Tools for road infrastructure safety management in poland

Road safety can be improved by implementing principles of road safety infrastructure management (RIS) on the network of European roads as adopted in the Directive. The document recommends that member states should use tried and tested tools for road safety management such as: road safety impact assessment (RIA), road safety audit (RSA), safety management on existing road networks including road safety ranking (RSM) and road safety inspection (RSI). The objective of the methods is to help road authorities to take rational decisions in the area of road safety and road infrastructure safety and understand the consequences occurring in the particular phases of road life cycle. To help with assessing the impact of a road project on the safety of related roads, a method was developed for long-term forecasts of accidents and accident cost estimation as well as a risk classification to identify risks that are not acceptable risks. With regard to road safety audits and road safety inspection, a set of principles was developed to identify risks and the basic classification of mistakes and omissions

Tools for Road Infrastructure Safety Management – Polish Experiences

AbstractThe objective of road safety infrastructure management is to ensure that when roads are planned, designed, built and used road risks can be systematically identified, assessed, removed and mitigated. There are a number of approaches to road safety management. European Union Directive 2008/96/EC requires EU member states to use four basic tools of road safety infrastructure management. An overview of the methods in these countries shows a variety of approaches to how these tools are used in practice. The paper presents a systematics of these tools and a concept of how they could be developed in Poland. It looks at the life cycle of a road structure and the requirements of risk management processes. The paper focuses on elements of scientific support to help build the necessary tools. To help with assessing the impact of a road project on the safety of related roads, a method was developed for long-term forecasts of accidents and accident victims and accident cost estimation as well as a risk classification to identify risks that are not acceptable risks. With regard to road safety audits and road safety inspection, a set of principles was developed to identify risks and the basic classification of errors and omissions. In the case of road network safety management, measures of individual and societal risk were selected. A method for classifying dangerous road sections was developed as well. An estimation is given of the consequences and effects of applying the tools of road safety management on the network of national roads in Poland until 2020

Dosimetric evaluation of heterogeneity corrections for RTOG 0236: stereotactic body radiotherapy of inoperable stage I-II non-small-cell lung cancer.

PURPOSE: Using a retrospective analysis of treatment plans submitted from multiple institutions accruing patients to the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) 0236 non-small-cell stereotactic body radiotherapy protocol, the present study determined the dose prescription and critical structure constraints for future stereotactic body radiotherapy lung protocols that mandate density-corrected dose calculations. METHOD AND MATERIALS: A subset of 20 patients from four institutions participating in the RTOG 0236 protocol and using superposition/convolution algorithms were compared. The RTOG 0236 protocol required a prescription dose of 60 Gy delivered in three fractions to cover 95% of the planning target volume. Additional requirements were specified for target dose heterogeneity and the dose to normal tissue/structures. The protocol required each site to plan the patient\u27s treatment using unit density, and another plan with the same monitor units and applying density corrections was also submitted. These plans were compared to determine the dose differences. Two-sided, paired Student\u27s t tests were used to evaluate these differences. RESULTS: With heterogeneity corrections applied, the planning target volume receiving \u3e/=60 Gy decreased, on average, 10.1% (standard error, 2.7%) from 95% (p = .001). The maximal dose to any point \u3e/=2 cm away from the planning target volume increased from 35.2 Gy (standard error, 1.7) to 38.5 Gy (standard error, 2.2). CONCLUSION: Statistically significant dose differences were found with the heterogeneity corrections. The information provided in the present study is being used to design future heterogeneity-corrected RTOG stereotactic body radiotherapy lung protocols to match the true dose delivered for RTOG 0236

Draft guidelines for formation of the road network

W ramach zbioru projektów wytycznych projektowania dróg i ulic opracowano „Wytyczne kształtowania sieci dróg” w zakresie wymagań podstawowych. W artykule wskazano na wybrane kierunki zmian w kształtowaniu struktury sieci drogowej zachodzące w praktyce zagranicznej oraz przedstawiono kluczowe elementy projektu wytycznych. Do elementów tych zaliczono: ogólne wymagania planowania sieci drogowej, klasyfikacje jednostek osadniczych i obiektów jako generatorów ruchu, standardy dostępności jednostek osadniczych i nieruchomości, system drogowych połączeń jednostek osadniczych i nieruchomości, kształtowanie struktury funkcjonalnej sieci drogowej i kształtowanie struktury technicznej sieci drogowej.As part of the set of draft guidelines for the design of roads and streets, “Guidelines for the formation of the road network” were developed in the scope of basic requirements. The article indicates selected directions of changes in formation the structure of the road network taking place in foreign practice and presents the key elements of the draft guidelines. These elements include: general requirements for road network planning, classifications of settlement units and objects as traffic generators, standards for the availability of settlement units and real estate, a system of road connections between settlement units and real estate, formation the functional structure of the road network and formation the technical structure of the road network

Tools for road infrastructure safety management in poland

Road safety can be improved by implementing principles of road safety infrastructure management (RIS) on the network of European roads as adopted in the Directive. The document recommends that member states should use tried and tested tools for road safety management such as: road safety impact assessment (RIA), road safety audit (RSA), safety management on existing road networks including road safety ranking (RSM) and road safety inspection (RSI). The objective of the methods is to help road authorities to take rational decisions in the area of road safety and road infrastructure safety and understand the consequences occurring in the particular phases of road life cycle. To help with assessing the impact of a road project on the safety of related roads, a method was developed for long-term forecasts of accidents and accident cost estimation as well as a risk classification to identify risks that are not acceptable risks. With regard to road safety audits and road safety inspection, a set of principles was developed to identify risks and the basic classification of mistakes and omissions

Problems of planning development of the transport system in metropolitan areas on the example of the Gdansk-Gdynia-Sopot metropolitan area

Problemy rozwoju systemów transportowych w metropoliach wynikają ze specyfiki tych obszarów, ich skali i struktury przestrzennej. Obszary te charakteryzują się dużą wewnętrzną integracją funkcjonalną oraz dobrze rozwiniętą siecią transportową. Dynamicznie rozwijające się obszary metropolitalne mają odrębne systemy zarządzania finansami, rozwiązania prawne oraz administrację, a także własne organy planowania i zarządzania, które mogą dokonywać zmian jakościowych, w tym w zakresie rozwoju systemów transportowych. Brak tych systemów i organów powoduje problemy w transporcie i zbyt wolne tempo zmian jakościowych. Pomimo skoku cywilizacyjnego dokonanego w ostatnim dziesięcioleciu w zakresie planowanych inwestycji transportowych, cały system transportowy naszej metropolii ma wiele słabych stron. W artykule przedstawiono problemy planowania rozwoju systemu transportowego w obszarach metropolitalnych na przykładzie Obszaru Metropolitalnego Gdańsk-Gdynia-SopotThe problems of the development of transport systems in metropolitan areas arise from the specific features of this area, its scale and spatial structure. These areas are characterized by a large scale of internal functional integration (strong functional links) and a well-developed transport network. The rapidly developing metropolitan areas have a distinct system of financial and legal and administrative management and their own planning and management bodies capable of making qualitative changes, including in the development of transport systems. The lack of these systems and bodies is causing problems in transport operations in metropolitan areas and too slow pace of qualitative changes. Despite the civilizational leap that has been made in the last decade in the field of planned transport investments, the whole transport system has many weak points. The paper presents problems of planning development of the transport system in metropolitan areas on the example of the Gdansk-Gdynia-Sopot metropolitan area

UN decade of action for road safety in the national road safety strategy until 2020 : Polish approach

Poland continues to have the highest number of road deaths per one million population in the European Union, according to a 2012 European Commission report – in 2011 the rate in Poland was 109 fatalities compared to the EU average of 61 killed. Adopted by the government in 2005 Poland’s National Road Safety Programme GAMBIT 2005 was the response to the EU’s 3rd Road Safety Action Programme. Despite extensive road safety efforts, the goal of Programme will not be fully met mainly due to lack of political and operational leadership and poor cooperation between road safety bodies. Work on a new National Road Safety Programme for the years 2013-2020 began in 2012 and were carried out by the National Road Safety Council. The authors of the paper supported the works, so that new strategy draws on the experience from the previous programme GAMBIT 2005 and addresses the challenges brought by European Union programmes and UN programmes. As a results this strategy follows several key principles like: system-based approach to road safety management setting final and interim targets road safety improvement based on “Vision Zero” and “Safe system” with strategic interventions comprising the basic pillars of safety: road safety management, safe road, safe vehicle, safe road users, post crash response focussing on the main road safety problems when identifying the priority interventions integrated approach to the selection of specific measures based on the 3E principle

Challenges and directions of developments for road safety in the coming decade in Poland

W Polsce utrzymuje się średnia tendencja spadkowa liczby ofiar śmiertelnych w wypadkach drogowych, jednocześnie tempo zmniejszania zagrożenia wypadkami śmiertelnymi jest coraz mniejsze. Biorąc pod uwagę uwarunkowania zewnętrzne (głównie prace Komisji Europejskiej), realizacja założeń Wizji Zero w krajach członkowskich do roku 2050, słabe rezultaty realizacji IV Programu BRD i założenia do nowego V Programu BRD na lata 2021–2030, niezbędne jest określenie w tym aspekcie sytuacji Polski i wyznaczenie kierunków działań programowych na następną dekadę. Celem artykułu jest określenie miejsca, w którym znajduje się Polska na drodze do realizacji założeń Wizji Zero i aktualnych programów brd na tle trzech ostatnich dekad działalności w tym zakresie, zidentyfikowanie uwarunkowań zewnętrznych i wewnętrznych, wspierających lub zagrażających realizacji działań na rzecz brd oraz opisanie założeń do przygotowania krajowego i regionalnych programów brd na następną dekadę. Ponadto zaprezentowana będzie charakterystyka i ocena poważnych wypadków drogowych z ofiarami śmiertelnymi i ciężko rannymi w Polsce oraz wskazane będą działania redukujące ich liczbę.In Poland, we still observe a downward trend in the number of fatalities in road accidents, although the rate of reducing the threat of fatal accidents is declining. Considering external conditions (mainly the activities of the European Commission) implementation of the Zero Vision assumptions in the EU member states up to 2050, poor results of the 4th Road Safety Program (RSP) and preparation of assumptions for the new 5th RSP for 2021–2030, it is necessary to determine Polish situation, to identify external and internal conditions and to define directions of program activities for the next decade. The aim of the article is to describe level of the Vision Zero implementation and current road safety programs in the light of three decades of developments in this area, to identify external and internal conditions that enable or threaten the implementation of measures for road safety and to define directions of actions and assumptions for the preparation of national and regional road safety programs for the next decade. Also the characteristics and assessment of serious road accidents with fatalities and seriously injured in Poland and the indication of measures reducing their number is presented in the article

Growing role of walking and cycling and the associated risks

Increasing the role of active mobility, including walking and cycling, is one of the tools for developing sustainable urban transport systems as recommended by the EU. The article describes the trends in pedestrian and bicycle traffic in Poland and its share in urban modal split. It identifies and describes the main sources of risks to pedestrian and cycle safety. Recommendations are proposed on how to ensure that pedestrians and cyclists can use traffic safely

Road safety within the "integrated system of transport safety"

The concept of the “Integrated System of Transport Safety” in Poland is a novel solution, built upon the best practices available from only a handful of countries in the world. In the last few decades, the extent of applying integrated transport safety systems to improve transport safety systems has varied; nevertheless, studying the experience of the safest countries in the world we can say that enormous progress has been achieved in this respect. Progress includes both social attitudes and system solutions. Both these issues are of critical importance. Firstly, they involve the recognition of human rights to safety. This, however, raises the question of whether these rights to transport safety are actually respected? Practice shows that the execution of this declaration is very difficult and to a significant extent depends on the insistence and awareness of the public. The paper is documenting the three year research project “Integrated System of Transport Safety” commissioned by the Polish Minister of Science and Higher Education in 2007