Overview of a road safety management system

Background

This document is intended to provide a general overview of road safety management systems. It describes where they fit within the government's Road Safety to 2010 strategy and it provides answers to the following questions.

What is a safety management system?

• What are the benefits of a safety management system?
• What should a safety management system contain?
• What issues need to be considered before developing a safety management system?
• Do any road controlling authorities (RCAs) already have a safety management system?
• How do RCAs begin developing their safety management systems?
• What is the Land Transport New Zealand (Land Transport NZ) doing to help?

Land Transport NZ is committed to supporting road controlling authorities in the development of their individual safety management systems. A further more detailed guideline. 'Guidelines for developing and implementing a safety management system for road controlling authorities', Land Transport NZ, November 2005, is available and may either be downloaded from this web site or a copy obtained from one of the Land Transport NZ offices.

What is a safety management system?

A safety management system (SMS)

• is a widely supported method of managing the road network to improve safety
• documents road safety strategies, policies, standards, procedures, staff expertise, management and audit systems of RCAs
• is an integral part of the overall management system for the road network.

Application of safety management systems throughout New Zealand is one of the key aspects of the government's Road Safety to 2010 strategy. It is the fundamental means of achieving the vision of a greater degree of consistency in how the national road environment appears to road users.

Land Transport NZ, local and central government are committed to a cooperative development of safety management systems.

What are the benefits of a safety management system?

The considered view of the government is that the systematic approach to safety management of the road network offered by SMSs will in turn provide a number of benefits to RCAs and road users, such as:

• a SMS ensures safety is considered in decisions about construction, maintenance and management of the road network. This assists in the achievement of targets and goals identified in the national and local road safety strategies
• implementation of road management procedures will be consistent and efficient
• risk management is documented providing protection from litigation
• road safety knowledge and expertise needs are documented and can be made available
• the documentation provides clear guidance for all staff and can be used for training new employees
• development, review and auditing of the roading network are undertaken in systematic way
• better safety for all road users.

What should a safety management system contain?

A RCA's safety management system should contain:

• direction - the RCA's road safety strategy
• delivery of the SMS - including:
  • standards and guidelines for the hierarchy of the RCA's roads
  • the RCA's requirement for expertise, qualifications and experience for staff roles and structure
• control - a management system with processes identified and responsibilities allocated
• review processes - a review/audit regime.

This is illustrated in the diagram below.

What issues need to be considered before developing a safety management system?

In broad terms, three issues need to be addressed before a safety management system can be successfully developed: budgets, scoping and resources.

Budgets

Developing and maintaining a safety management system has been estimated to cost between $20,000 and $40,000 per year however many of these costs are already occurring as normal network management activities.

Financial support is available from Land Transport NZ (from within the 'Professional Service' category) for staff time associated with the SMS.

Efficiency gains from the operation of a SMS are considered to exceed the associated costs.

Scoping

Quantifying the work required to develop a SMS is suggested as a first step for an RCA. Land Transport NZ has funding to provide experienced staff who can assist RCAs with their scoping study.

Resources

RCAs that have already successfully adopted a SMS invariably have someone championing road safety management within their organisations. Limited funding is available from Land Transport NZ to provide support.

Do any RCAs already have a safety management system?

In recent years Land Transport NZ has assisted in the development of SMSs for most RCAs in New Zealand.

Those RCAs that have developed a SMS began by documenting their current systems and undertaking gradual improvements as the SMS evolves. This has led to a corresponding improvement in the road network and the safety of road users.

The remaining RCAs have a form of SMS in place although these are generally incomplete and without robust documentation

How do RCAs begin developing their safety management system?

RCAs wishing to develop a SMS in the near future should contact their local Land Transport NZ regional office in the first instance.

Regional Land Transport NZ engineering and specialist support staff with safety management system knowledge and experience can provide encouragement, guidance, assistance and support.

What is the Land Trasnport NZ doing to help?

A safety management system project is one of many initiatives Land Transport NZ is undertaking as its contribution to the government's Road Safety to 2010 strategy.

The project's purpose is to promote the adoption of safety management systems by RCAs to ensure that decisions about construction, maintenance, management and operation of road networks consider safety and help achieve targets and goals identified in national and local road safety strategies.

More specifically, the project will:

• promote the benefits of SMSs to RCA decision-makers
• provide guidelines that will assist RCAs developing a SMS
• identify safety standards and guidelines for road design and management for inclusion in a RCA's own SMS
• outline a model road safety strategy for use by RCAs if required for the development of their own SMS strategy
• provide assistance to all RCAs developing SMSs
• specify general criteria for appropriate expertise in SMS development and management. Training needed to reach this level of expertise will also be identified
• conduct technical workshops with industry to develop and promote SMSs
• outline appropriate management and audit regimes for SMSs. Training needs will also be identified in this area
• develop an agreed national classification system as the basis for managing the safety of the road network
• specify a network safety performance evaluation process to quantify the benefits of the SMS approach to road safety
• survey and assess the existing network with regard to design standards and traffic management practice
• develop procedures for monitoring the safety performance of the road network
• encourage the adoption of appropriate and consistently applied standards for each category of road hierarchy so we have a 'no surprises' road environment.

Road Safety to 2010 strategy

A key strategic document, Road Safety to 2010, was released in October 2003. It sets out the government's longer term plan for road safety in New Zealand, including:

• the government's goals of no more than 300 fatalities and 4,500 hospitalisations per year by 2010
• targets for road safety, including regional and road-user group targets for 2004
• funding
• the contributions being made by government agencies
• how road safety will contribute to the broader transport objectives of the New Zealand Transport Strategy
• the review process.

The Road Safety to 2010 strategy replaces the National Road Safety Plan 1995, which set national goals and targets to December 2001.

The new Road Safety Strategy 2010 reflects recent government decisions, which in turn were based on an extensive consultation process carried out in late 2000 by the National Road Safety Committee.

Responses to the consultation showed widespread support for continued improvement in New Zealand's road safety performance. There was also strong support for a mixture of education, enforcement and engineering measures to be put in place to achieve the proposed goals.

The Road Safety to 2010 strategy is also aligned with the objectives and priorities of the New Zealand Transport Strategy.

Last updated: 30 January 2006