Road safety engineering risk assessment part 3: review of best practice in road crash database and analysis system design

Crash databases are an essential tool in analysing crash risk. Databases allow identification of high crash locations, and provide information on crash causation, allowing these crashes to be effectively targeted. The information contained in crash databases also allows analysis of trends and so assists greatly in strategic safety related decisions. All Australasian jurisdictions have crash database systems, but many provide only basic analysis tools for the data collected. In order to add value to this data, and better inform decision makers, additional tools should be available. This project identified good practice in database design, including features that may be of high interest to Australasian jurisdictions. This project involved a detailed review of Australasian and international crash databases to assess best practice features. Contact was made with each Australasian jurisdiction, and information was gathered on available features. Visits were made to a sample of jurisdictions to view these features, as often a live demonstration is the only way to appreciate system capabilities. A literature review was undertaken of international practice on this issue. Contact was also made with key international experts to determine current best practice.