Does the 80 km/h speed limit save lives in France?

INTRODUCTION: Speeding is considered to be a major contributor to road fatalities and injuries worldwide. Inappropriate speeding behavior is associated with a high casualty burden. It could be responsible for at least 30% of road accidents. METHOD: In 2018, the French authorities decided to introduce a new speed limit. They lowered the speed limit to 80 km/h on the unseparated interurban network. The aim was to reduce the number of fatalities and injuries and to implement some measures in line with international commitments. This paper uses different econometric models applied to time series for different groups of counties. RESULTS: The results show a significant positive contribution of the new speed limit. The estimated number of lives saved is between 300 and 350. The overall reduction in the number of fatalities is 10%. The results also show a differentiated impact according to the local context and the different dynamics at play. CONCLUSIONS AND PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: The results of this paper are in line with the scientific literature on speed limit reductions. They represent a validation of a debated public decision, while at the same time consolidating the body of knowledge on the subject, helping the decision-maker to adopt an appropriate measure to improve road safety performance.

Economic valuation of preventing fatal and serious road injuries. Results of a Willingness-To-Pay study in four European countries.

This paper presents the results of a stated choice study for estimating the Willingness-To-Pay of respondents in four European countries (Belgium, France, Germany and the Netherlands) to reduce the risk of fatal and serious injuries in road crashes. Respondents were confronted with hypothetical route choices that differ in respect of travel costs, travel time and crash risk. The survey was completed by 8,002 respondents, equally spread over the four participating countries and representative for each country with regards to gender, age and region. Possible biases caused by problematic choice behaviour such as inconsistent, irrational or lexicographic answers were addressed. The resulting values were estimated by means of a mixed logit model allowing to account for the panel nature of the data. The Value of a Statistical Life (VSL) was estimated at 6.2 Mill EUR, the Value of a Statistical Serious Injury (VSSI) at 950,000 EUR, and the Value of Time (VoT) at 16.1 EUR/h. Consequently, the relative value of avoiding a fatal injury is estimated to be around 7 times higher than the value of an avoided serious injury. The study revealed differences between countries with France showing values that are significantly lower than the average and Germany showing values that are significantly higher. The estimated VSL values are considerably higher than the values currently used in the four countries, but they are within the range of values found in similar stated choice studies. The results can be used as an input in a broad range of socioeconomic studies including cost-benefit analysis and assessments of socioeconomic costs of road crashes.

A systematic cost-benefit analysis of 29 road safety measures.

Economic evaluations of road safety measures are only rarely published in the scholarly literature. We collected and (re-)analyzed evidence in order to conduct cost-benefit analyses (CBAs) for 29 road safety measures. The information on crash costs was based on data from a survey in European countries. We applied a systematic procedure including corrections for inflation and Purchasing Power Parity in order to express all the monetary information in the same units (EUR, 2015). Cost-benefit analyses were done for measures with favorable estimated effects on road safety and for which relevant information on costs could be found. Results were assessed in terms of benefit-to-cost ratios and net present value. In order to account for some uncertainties, we carried out sensitivity analyses based on varying assumptions for costs of measures and measure effectiveness. Moreover we defined some combinations used as best case and worst case scenarios. In the best estimate scenario, 25 measures turn out to be cost-effective. 4 measures (road lighting, automatic barriers installation, area wide traffic calming and mandatory eyesight tests) are not cost-effective according to this scenario. In total, 14 measures remain cost-effective throughout all scenarios, whereas 10 other measures switch from cost-effective in the best case scenario to not cost-effective in the worst case scenario. For three measures insufficient information is available to calculate all scenarios. Two measures (automatic barriers installation and area wide traffic calming) even in the best case do not become cost-effective. Inherent uncertainties tend to be present in the underlying data on costs of measures, effects and target groups. Results of CBAs are not necessarily generally valid or directly transferable to other settings.

Improving the safety effect of speed camera programs through innovations: Evidence from the French experience.

PROBLEM: This study investigates the effect of the French Automated Speed Enforcement Program (ASEP) on casualties involving different types of road users. METHOD: Interrupted time-series analyses were conducted to estimate the effect of the ASEP. RESULTS: Overall, the ASEP was associated with a decrease of 19.7% in traffic fatalities and crashes with injuries. Significant diminutions were observed for passenger vehicles/light SUVs (−25.4%), motorcyclists (−39.0%), and trucks (−15.7%). Adding red light cameras and devices taking pictures of both ends of the vehicle produced, in some cases, additional gains among specific categories of road users. CONCLUSION: Traffic fatalities, crashes with injuries and the severity of crashes significantly declined following the introduction of the ASEP in November 2003. Practical applications: ASEPs are an effective strategy to prevent traffic casualties. Innovations such as red light cameras and devices taking pictures of both ends of the vehicle can improve an ASEP.

Effects of introducing an administrative .05% blood alcohol concentration limit on law enforcement patterns and alcohol-related collisions in Canada.

Except for Quebec, all Canadian provinces have introduced administrative laws to lower the permitted blood alcohol concentration (BAC) to .05% or .04% for driving-or having the care of-a motor vehicle. Using linear mixed effects models for longitudinal data, this study evaluates the effect of administrative BAC laws on fatal alcohol related crashes and law enforcement patterns in Canada from 1987 to 2010. Results reveal a significant decrease of 3.7% (95% C.I.: 0.9-6.5%) in fatally injured drivers with a BAC level equal or greater than .05% following the introduction of these laws. Reductions were also observed for fatally injured drivers with BAC levels greater that .08% and .15%. The introduction of administrative BAC laws led neither to significant changes in the rate of driving while impaired (DWI) incidents reported by police officers nor in the probability of being charged for DWI under the Criminal Code.

A few seconds to have an accident, a long time to recover: consequences for road accident victims from the ESPARR cohort 2 years after the accident.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the present study was to describe the consequences of a road accident in adults, taking account of the type of road user, and to determine predictive factors for consequences at 2 years. DESIGN: Prospective follow-up study. METHODS: The cohort was composed of 1168 victims of road traffic accidents, aged ≥16 years. Two years after the accident, 912 victims completed a self-administered questionnaire. Weighted logistic regression models were implemented to compare casualties still reporting impact related to the accident versus those reporting no residual impact. Five outcomes were analysed: unrecovered health status, impact on occupation or studies, on familial or affective life, on leisure or sport activities and but also the financial difficulties related to the accident. RESULTS: 46.1% of respondents were motorised four-wheel users, 29.6% motorised two-wheel (including quad) users, 13.3% pedestrians (including inline skate and push scooter users) and 11.1% cyclists. 53.3% reported unrecovered health status, 32.0% persisting impact on occupation or studies, 25.2% on familial or affective life, 46.9% on leisure or sport activities and 20.2% still had accident-related financial difficulties. Type of user, adjusted on age and gender, was linked to unrecovered health status and to impact on leisure or sport activities. When global severity (as measured by NISS) was integrated in the previous model, type of user was also associated with impact on occupation or studies. Type of user was further associated with impact on occupation or studies and on leisure or sport activities when global severity and the sociodemographic data obtained at inclusion were taken into account. It was not, however, related to any of the outcomes studied here, when the models focused on the injured body region. Finally, type of road user did not seem, on the various predictive models, to be related to financial difficulties due to the accident or to impact on familial or affective life. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, victims were affected by their accident even 2 years after it occurred. The severity of lesions induced by the accident was the main predictive factor. However, considering lesion as intermediary factors between the accident and the recovery status at 2 year post-accident, impact on health status was lower for cyclists than M4W users or M2W users.

An assessment of the safety effects of the French speed camera program.

This article presents the results of an evaluation of the speed camera program implemented in France in November 2003. The effects of this program on traffic casualties were estimated using interrupted time-series analyses. Various parametizations were attempted in order to capture changes in the constant and the slope of our traffic injury series. Results of the study reveal significant decreases in both fatal and non-fatal traffic injuries on the whole road network following deployment of the speed camera program. The fatality rate per 100,000 vehicles fell by 21% whereas the decrease in non-fatal traffic injuries displayed a decay function: a 26.2% reduction was recorded in the first month but dropped to 0.8% for the last observation of the series.