A decision support system for road safety analysis

The aim of this paper is to develop a procedure for supporting public administrations in planning safety interventions on the road network. Road safety conditions depend on several factors, represented by a variety of quantitative and qualitative data, including: number of traffic accidents, traffic flow, lane width, shoulder width, road curvature and grade, access-point density, road markings and road signs (Mooren et al., 2012; OECD, 2002). By analysing a set of given roads or different sections of the same road, each with specific safety conditions, this methodology allows to determine which sections require interventions to improve safe driving conditions. Specifically, the multicriteria analysis technique is used in decision-making processes to support the choice among different alternatives in complex problems (Fadda, 2002). Among the different multicriteria techniques available, the Concordance Analysis will be used here. This paper proposes a unique modelling tool that incorporates the different indicators to calculate safety conditions. The methodology has been applied to a real case study for evaluating road safety on sections of a motorway infrastructure