Trials begin at regional junctions to improve safety

Friday, 7 September 2018

The Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure (DPTI) is trialling a Rural Junction Active Warning System (RJAWS) which will improve safety on the South Australian rural road network.

This system, originally developed in Sweden, has been trialled in New Zealand as part of a wider program to address safety at high risk rural junctions.

The RJAWS will be trialled at the following four junctions:

• Cudlee Creek Road / Fox Creek Road junction
• McLaren Flat Road / Baker Gully Road junction
• Bull Creek Road / Paris Creek Road junction
• Horrocks Highway / Stradbrooke Road junction.

The system involves installing variable speed limit signs at junction approaches which are radar triggered by the presence of side road traffic.

Motorists crossing a major road or turning right onto a major rural road can underestimate the required gap to do so safely, so the activation of a reduced speed limit for a short section of road approaching the junction will increase this gap time.

Lower vehicle speeds also translate to lower impact speeds in the event of a collision, which reduces the severity of sustained injuries.

The RJAWS is also useful for rural junctions where:

• The line of sight may cause motorists to underestimate the required gap to enter or cross a major rural road
• The cost to rectify the line of sight is prohibitive.

The $500,000 project is funded by DPTI’s Annual Program.

Trials have begun on Cudlee Creek Road, with trials at the remaining junctions to begin by mid-October (weather permitting).