Title: Effects of Median Barriers on Accident Rates in South Korea
Abstract: The median barrier is a safety feature most commonly used to separate opposing traffic on a divided highway. In designing highways, the design and installation of a median barrier is critical from a safety viewpoint because road-crossing accidents are more serious than other accidents. This study analyzed traffic accident data gathered from all 4-lane or wider national highways in rural Korea to examine the accident prevention effect of the median barriers. The traffic accident data was categorized into two groups: with a median barrier or without a median barrier. For more effective analysis, the data was classified by accident type, severity, and occurrence time. To determine the effectiveness of median barriers, the accident frequency and the accident severity was compared using measures of effectiveness such as the accident rate, EPDO, and the occupancy ratio of specific accidents. Accident frequency and accident severity were lower on roads with median barriers. Road sections with median barriers had fewer serious or fatal crashes and had fewer head-on crashes. Thus, median barriers improve the safety of 4-lane or wider rural national highways. This study can aid in the selection of road sections where median barriers should be installed.
Publication Year: 2007
Publication Date: 2007-01-01
Language: en
Type: article
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