Road Safety Audit Evaluation of Typical Two Lane Divided Highway in Nigeria

As a consequence of the increasing number of traffic volume, road safety improvement is becoming a major policy issue for road authorities. Road accidents create both social and economic cost on the country’s economy. In pursuance of road safety improvement, it is important to display different solution alternatives considering the budget limitations of the road authorities. In this research, road safety audit practices from different countries were reviewed and best practice options from these were applied for road safety audit in Nigeria. The overall roadway section evaluated had a score of 5.7 showing that the overall effectiveness of the road is below average and so much has to be done to improve the condition of the road. It is also recognized that the most common hazards observed are fixed massive objects within the safety zone area, deficient guardrails, pavement damages like potholes and edge deterioration, missing shoulders, improper pedestrian crossings, improper commercial and bus stop locations, activities which indicates that majority of the hazards observed are associated with road design. Fixed objects, roadway cross section elements, bus stops, intersection layouts, roadway signage and pavement conditions were assessed for their potential to induce risk and danger to drivers and pedestrians. The findings point to a need for incorporation of safety at the design stages and during construction and maintenances of roadway facilities.