Pedestrian safety - Global Road Safety Partnership

Pedestrian safety: a road safety manual for decision-makers and practitioners
BOX 5.1: Pedestrian overpass on a major highway in Kampala, Uganda
Over 40% of people killed in road traffic crashes in
Uganda in 2010 were pedestrians (2). Though walking
is a dominant mode of transport in most African
countries, road infrastructure facilities for pedestrians
are generally inadequate or underdeveloped in
both urban and rural areas (3,4).
In an effort to address the safety of pedestrians, an
overpass costing approximately US$ 100 000 was
constructed at Nakawa Trading Centre, approximately
six kilometres from Kampala city centre (5). This
busy trading centre with many small retail shops,
industries, a sports stadium, offices, low-cost residential
estates and schools is on the Kampala–Jinja
highway. The overpass was built in August 1998,
when there was a heightened sense of the importance
of road safety because the Road Safety Act
had just been enacted and several crashes at the
location provoked public outrage.
An evaluation of the overpass conducted in 2002
revealed the following results (5):
• Just over one third of pedestrians used the
overpass. Users were mostly female (49%) and
children (79%). The low usage of the overpass
reflected some of the design flaws, as well as the
position of the overpass, which raised security
concerns among users. Respondents were concerned
that the overpass was untidy, poorly lit
and that children loitered on it. Most pedestrians
found the overpass to be inconvenient and difficult
to access. Consequently, many pedestrians could
be seen crossing the road through motorized traffic.
No changes appeared to have been made to
the overpass by July 2012.
• While the number of pedestrians killed dropped
from eight to two after it was constructed, the
number of pedestrians seriously injured increased
from 14 before construction to 17 afterwards.
The mixed outcomes associated with this isolated
intervention indicate the need for a comprehensive
approach to pedestrian safety. Other measures such
as reducing and enforcing vehicle speeds, providing
raised crossings, providing sidewalks and raising
awareness about these measures would have complemented
the overpass.
©2012 Olive Kobusingye
5: Evaluating pedestrian safety programmes
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