The influence of heavy goods vehicle traffic on accidents on different types of Spanish interurban roads

This paper illustrates a methodology developed to analyze the influence of traffic conditions, i.e. volume and composition on accidents on different types of interurban roads in Spain, by applying negative binomial models. The annual average daily traffic was identified as the most important variable, followed by the percentage of heavy goods vehicles, and different covariate patterns were found for each road type. The analysis of hypothetical scenarios of the reduction of heavy goods vehicles in two of the most representative freight transportation corridors, combined with hypotheses of total daily traffic mean intensity variation, produced by the existence or absence of induced traffic gives rise to several scenarios. In all cases a reduction in the total number of accidents would occur as a result of the drop in the number of heavy goods transport vehicles, However the higher traffic intensity, resulting of the induction of other vehicular traffic, reduces the effects on the number of accidents on single carriageway road segments compared with high capacity roads, due to the increase in exposure. This type of analysis provides objective elements for evaluating policies that encourage modal shifts and road safety enhancements

Speech recognition in noise with active and passive hearing protectors: a comparative study

The perceived negative influence of standard hearing protectors on communication is a common argument for not wearing them. Thus, augmented protectors have been developed to improve speech intelligibility. Nevertheless, their actual benefit remains a point of concern. In this paper, speech perception with active earplugs is compared to standard passive custom-made earplugs. The two types of active protectors included amplify the incoming sound with a fixed level or to a user selected fraction of the maximum safe level. For the latter type, minimal and maximal amplification are selected. To compare speech intelligibility, 20 different speech-in-noise fragments are presented to 60 normal-hearing subjects and speech recognition is scored. The background noise is selected from realistic industrial noise samples with different intensity, frequency, and temporal characteristics. Statistical analyses suggest that the protectors' performance strongly depends on the noise condition. The active protectors with minimal amplification outclass the others for the most difficult and the easiest situations, but they also limit binaural listening. In other conditions, the passive protectors clearly surpass their active counterparts. Subsequently, test fragments are analyzed acoustically to clarify the results. This provides useful information for developing prototypes, but also indicates that tests with human subjects remain essential.Full Tex

External costs of transports imposed on neighbours and fellow road users

This thesis consists of an introductory chapter and four research papers, summarized as follows. The overall purpose is to study various external effects of the transport system; effects that are not considered (or not fully considered) today. The first paper estimates the relationship between accident frequency and homogeneous and inhomogeneous traffic flows, which is useful for calculating the marginal external accident cost of the traffic flow. We find that important information is lost if differences between traffic modes are not considered. The indication is that an additional vehicle on the road decreases the accident risk. Separating the traffic flow into cars and lorries, we find that an additional car increases the accident risk whereas an additional lorry lowers the accident risk. The second paper, a literature overview, discusses the value of road and railway safety by combining the results of psychological and economical studies. Various factors that possibly influence individuals? perception of risk and their willingness to trade risk for money are examined. We find that the use of different values within different contexts may be motivated. The findings imply, furthermore, that studies estimating the value of safety should focus not only on disparities between transport modes per se but also on disparities between accident types. In the third paper, the choice experiment approach is used to assess people's preferences regarding railway transports of hazardous materials. Exposure to hazardous materials is used to describe various transport configurations. It is shown that the choice experiment method as well as the use of exposure can be applied within this area. In the final paper, preferences regarding road transports of hazardous materials are examined. The method and design are the same as used in the previous paper but with special attention given to the presence of biases. The presence of hypothetical bias is tested for by the use of self-reported degree of confidence, and the presence of a focusing effect explored by the inclusion of information on other fatal risks. We find that there are no major differences in individual preferences regarding hazardous materials transported by rail or road. It is also found that individuals that are confident in their answers express higher values of willingness to pay (accept a compensation) for a reduction (increase) in exposure. Finally, no focusing effect can be detected

Can Mobility Management Campaigning Contribute to Pro-Environmental Behaviour in General? Development of an Analytical Tool

This paper brings to the fore the importance of a holistic approach to attaining a general pro-environmental behavioural change in order to reduce carbon emissions and the need to strive for a spillover of pro-environmental behaviour from one area to another. An adjusted version of the MaxSEM model is developed to capture differences in stages of behavioural change regarding environmental load on entering a Mobility Management campaign and one year after. The analytical tool is applied on two test samples in order to illustrate the tool and possible difficulties and methodological challenges. The test samples consist of participants in Mobility Management campaigns with personal incentives in two cities in Sweden. The application of the tool indicates e.g. that the timing of the survey is important and that there is need to upscale the MM-campaigns, in order to further discuss and analyse the effects of voluntary mobility measures in other domains.</p

Some Influencing Factors for Passenger Train Punctuality in Sweden

Punctuality is regarded as an important measure of the performance of a railway system, and is the one most commonly used and discussed measure both in the industry and among travelers. In many countries, the punctuality of trains, and thus the performance of the railway system, is deemed as lacking. The aim of this article is to study and quantify how several weather-, timetable, operational and infrastructure-related variables influence punctuality in passenger train traffic. This can contribute to better understanding of the performance of railway systems, and help identify possible improvements. The study is based on a dataset containing detailed timetables and records of all 32.4 million train movements for all trains in Sweden during the year of 2015, over 1.1 million departures. Supporting this is a comprehensive register of over 80 000 infrastructure elements, and almost 87 million weather observations. We consider the size and allocation of margins, the existence of negative margins, two measures for traffic volume, the journey time and distance, how often different vehicle individuals are used, the number of line and station interactions between trains, the amount of precipitation, the temperature, wind speed, snow depth, and eight types of infrastructure elements. We show how these variables affect punctuality, and estimate how much of the variation in punctuality can be explained by them. The findings can be used to design timetables, change operational parameters and modify infrastructure design so that punctuality improves. They can also help identify areas which should be prioritized in planning, maintenance and research.publishedVersionCarl-William Palmqvist et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited

The influence of economic incentives linked to road safety indicators on accidents: The case of toll concessions in Spain

The goal of this paper is to evaluate whether the incentives incorporated in toll highway concession contracts in order to encourage private operators to adopt measures to reduce accidents are actually effective at improving safety. To this end, we implemented negative binomial regression models using information about highway characteristics and accident data from toll highway concessions in Spain from 2007 to 2009. Our results show that even though road safety is highly influenced by variables that are not managed by the contractor, such as the annual average daily traffic (AADT), the percentage of heavy vehicles on the highway, number of lanes, number of intersections and average speed; the implementation of these incentives has a positive influence on the reduction of accidents and injuries. Consequently, this measure seems to be an effective way of improving safety performance in road networks

The effects of flooding on railway infrastructure: A literature review

Flooding of railway infrastructure can lead to significant adverse complications, including infrastructural damage and large-scale disruptions. These can lead to increased economic costs and decreased reliability. Due to climate change, flooding is expected to increase in severity and frequency globally. This paperpresents the findings of a systematic literature review surrounding the effects of flooding on railway infrastructure. 24 relevant papers found via the Scopus database were reviewed. We find that studies focus on quantifying the effects of past and or future flooding events on railway infrastructure, while fewer studies mention adaptation strategies to mitigate the impacts. To understand and predict the future impacts of flooding on railway infrastructure and develop appropriate adaptation strategies, it is important to first quantify and understand past events

Skuggan är verklighetens följeslagare

NO: Denne masteroppgaven utforsker hvordan kunst kan utfordre og utvide vår oppfatning av virkeligheten gjennom fenomener som Skyggen, Spøkelset, Avtrykket og Speilingen. Ved å analysere kunstneriske verk og teoretiske perspektiver, blant annet Peter Geschwinds installasjoner og Jacques Derridas konsept hauntologi, undersøker teksten hvordan det usynlige og det fornemmelige kan manifesteres i billedkunst. ENG: This thesis explores how art can challenge and expand our perception of reality through phenomena such as the shadow, the ghost, the imprint, and the reflection. By analyzing artistic works and theoretical perspectives, including Peter Geschwind’s installations and Jacques Derrida’s concept of hauntology, the text examines how the invisible and the perceptible can manifest in visual art

Preliminära resultat och analys av del 1 av enkätundersökningen ”Coronas påverkan på arbete och resor”

Här redovisas resultat och analyser från en webbaserad enkätundersökning som i april 2020 genomförts i fem statliga myndigheter: Arbetsförmedlingen, Energimyndigheten, Naturvårdsverket, DIGG Myndigheten för digital förvaltning och Trafikverket. Undersökningen är en första del i forskningsstudien; en uppföljande, andra enkät är planerad att skickas ut när restriktionerna på arbetsplatserna har lättats eller helt återkallats, samt kompletteras med intervjuer. Studien genomförs av forskarna Lena Hiselius och Peter Arnfalk vid Lunds Universitet, med forskningsmedel från K2. Enkäten gick ut till slumpvis utvalda medarbetare, företrädelsevis på kontor i större städer då effekten på kollektivtrafiken var en prioriterad frågeställning i undersökningen. Myndigheterna ombesörjde själva utskicket till de anställda, och på så sätt har forskarna ingen kännedom om vem som ombetts svara på enkäten. I tre av myndigheterna (Arbetsförmedlingen, Energimyndigheten och Naturvårdsverket) gick enkäten ut till 200 anställda, i Trafikverket 360 och i DIGG 60 anställda (samtliga). Totalt inkom 719 svar vilket innebär en svarsfrekvens på 70 %. I enkätstudien ställdes frågor inom fyra områden: 1) Bakgrundsfrågor 2) resor till och från arbetet/arbetsresor, 3) tjänsteresor och digitala möten, samt 4) distansarbete. Följande redovisning av enkätresultaten är indelad enligt dessa fem områden, samt en sammanfattande analys/reflektion