Traffic conflict analysis as a road safety diagnostic tool for urban road facilities

Urban road improvement programs, such as geometric intersection improvement or recalculation of cycle time for traffic lights, should include road safety and accessibility considerations. These components could be evaluated in a short time without waiting for accident data from police departments or accident events by using a tool known as a traffic conflict study. With a traffic conflict analysis, the effectiveness of any road improvement could be evaluated, and any traffic event involving two or more vehicles, or single vehicles taking evasive action to avoid crashes, could be investigated. Traffic conflict studies have been used in many countries, but less extensively for analyzing road improvement projects. This paper describes traffic conflict studies which have been applied at intersections in Bandung, resulting in a new Special Stopping Space (SSS) for motorcycles at a major intersection, intersection design improvements, and traffic management improvements at intersections. This research shows the applicability of the traffic conflict study technique to road facility improvement projects in Indonesia.