St. Charles County Transportation Plan 2030 - East-West Gateway ...

severity, and the crash rate (crashes per vehicle miles of travel), for each road segment, were used
to assess their level of safety. These assessments were straight forward and the degree of safety on
all major roads was described.
Attempting to forecast safety, however, becomes much more difficult. First, no data is available
except that which is historical. Second, no accepted crash forecasting model has been developed
that has any degree of accuracy. Third, future modes of travel, especially on the road system, has
many unknowns such as the ease or difficulty of driving, safety features of the road, safety features
of vehicles, and technological changes for both highway and vehicle operations. In the next twenty
years these changes may have a dramatic effect on safety.
Instead of attempting to forecast if their will be more or less crashes and accidents, and whether they
will be more or less severe, this report discusses conditions that are expected to exist on all
transportation modes and how they could affect their safety.
C-4.1. The Street and Highway System
For the road and highway system some facts are known. On the positive side, many changes have
been made that will tend to decrease the number of crashes and their severity. Improvements have
been made to the highway system bringing old roads up to today’s design standard. They include
safety features that did not previously exist. Improvements have also been made to newer roads that
include specific safety features. New traffic control devices have been installed that more safely
handle, advise, and direct traffic. These include improved traffic signals and traffic signal systems,
better signing and pavement markings, and information message boards that alert drivers of
advanced road conditions. Other technological changes that will improve traffic flow are constantly
being evaluated and in the near future may be employed.
On the negative side, many factors are making driving more dangerous and increase the possibility
of more crashes and their severity. The number of vehicles on the roads and drivers available to use
them has continued to rise and thus the amount of vehicular travel has increased every year. This
is expected to continue although it will most likely taper off in the future. This causes more
congestion, which in turn creates the possibility of vehicles colliding. On many roads, volumes
during the peak hours have reached the road’s capacity and traffic moves in a start-stop mode. This
creates conditions that tend to increase the number crashes. Drivers are not only dealing with more
vehicles around them, but with other distractions. All types of technical devices have been placed
in vehicles that take away the driver’s attention. These include cell phones, radios/CDs, navigation
systems, and even television. Eating in vehicles has become commonplace. Other passengers can
cause distractions. Along the road advertisements take the attention of drivers. Other vehicle
incidents can result in distractions and at times can cause additional crashes. Drivers’ attitudes have
changed due to all the demands that are placed on them and in some cases reaches what is described
as driver rage. Lifestyle changes also contribute to driver behavior that in many cases can add to
the potential for more crashes. All these factors add to the possibility of more crashes occurring in
the future and in many cases, could increase the severity of these crashes.
There are other unknowns that could either increase or decrease the degree of safety afforded travel
on the highway system. Funds for improvements play a major role and its future is cloudy. Many
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