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Road Safety
10 km/h Slower Can Make All the Difference
The following example illustrates how speed affects driving and outcomes.
A motorist travelling 50 km/h who suddenly sees a pedestrian can react, brake and stop in time if the vehicle is within 31.2 metres away, with a reaction time of 1.3 seconds, under normal conditions on a dry roadway.
Using the same example, but travelling 10 km/h faster.
If a motorist travelling at 60 km/h sees a pedestrian 31.2 metres away and brakes, the vehicle will slow down, but it will still be moving at 42 km/h when it strikes the pedestrian. At this speed, the pedestrian will almost certainly be permanently disabled or killed.
10 km/h slower and everyone makes it home alive and well...
A few km/h slower can mean the difference between life and death.
Studies show that reducing average traffic speeds by 3 km/h would reduce the number of accidents by 15% each year.
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