DIARY OF FORTHCOMING EVENTS

Any views expressed are those of the Editor and the individual
contributors and not necessarily those of DFID.
March 2001
ARRB Conference - Managing Your Transport Assets
Melbourne, Australia.
19 - 21 March 2001
Organiser: ARRB Transport Research
Fax: +61 3 9887 8104
E.mail: 20confararrb.org.au
www.arrb.org.au

May 2001
Managing and Financing of Rural Transport Course
Cambodia.
Organiser: TRL International Division
E.mail: dgould@trl.co.uk

First Road Transportation Technology Transfer
Conference in Africa (Africa T 2 2001)
Arusha, Tanzania.
23 - 25 May 2001
Organiser: Tanzania Technology Transfer Centre
Fax: + 255-22-2116379
E.mail: tcs@twiga.com
tzcenter@udsm.ac.tz

June 2001
14th IRF World Road Congress
Paris, France.
11 - 15 June 2001
Organiser: International Road Federation
Fax: +33 1 40 26 04 44
E.mail: p.fournier@colloquium.fr
www.irfparis2001.com

Management of Appropriate Technology in the Road Sector for Developing and Emerging Economies Course
Crowthorne, UK
25 - 29 June 2001
Organiser: TRL/Intech
E.mail: dgould@trl.co.uk

July 2001
Roads and Transport in Developing Countries and Emerging Nations Course
Crowthorne, UK
2 - 13 July 2001
Organiser: TRL
E.mail: dgould@trl.co.uk

9th WCTR 2001
Seoul, Korea.
22 - 27 July 2001
Organiser: WCTR
Tel: +82-344-910-3100
E.mail: secretariat@wctr2001.org
www.wctr2001.org

August 2001
Fifth International Conference on Managing Pavements Seattle, Washington, USA.
11 - 14 August 2001
Organiser: Washington State Department of Transportation
Fax: + 206 543 2352
E.mail:pavement@engr.washington.edu
www.engr.washington.edu/~uw-epp/pavements

October 2001
4th Conference of Eastern Asian Society for Transportation Studies (EASTS) Hanoi, Vietnam.
24 -27 October 2001
Organiser: Transportation Studies Society of Vietnam
Fax: +81 3 3221 5489
E.mail: easts@sa2.so-net.ne.jp

World Bank: poverty alleviation workshop

The World Bank held a one-day workshop in Washington in June 2000, to discuss linkages between Transport and Poverty. A key aim of the workshop was to present the findings from a DFID-funded study carried out by the Overseas Development Institute (ODI) for the World Bank. The report, produced by a multi-disciplinary team, aims to provide an input into current thinking on the selection of instruments for inclusion in poverty-reduction strategies. The report, together with a toolkit developed from the report findings, can be seen on the ODI website (www.odi.org.uk/pppg/poverty.html) The development of country strategy and transport toolkits to provide practical guidance was also discussed; research findings from Bangladesh, Indonesia, Peru, Zambia and Ghana were presented and a session on cross cutting perspectives was also held. Poverty reduction is a key goal for both DFID and the World Bank. The ODI study and the workshop were just some of the initiatives being taken to:

• improve understanding of the linkages between transport interventions and the welfare outcomes for poor households

• assist countries in the development of their strategies for poverty alleviation by providing practical advice on
issues, diagnosis, analysis, guidance on public actions and evaluation.

More information on poverty reduction strategy development processes can be found at:
www.worldbank.org/poverty.prsp

Teaching children to be safe road users

Road accident studies in developing countries typically show that pedestrians are highly vulnerable road users and that children are particularly at risk.
For example approximately one-in-five of road accident fatalities in Africa are children under the age of 15 – about twice the rate for the United Kingdom.
One way of making children safer is to provide road safety education (RSE) as part of their formal schooling – as is the case in most developed countries. RSE needs to be progressive, relevant and practical, and teachers need to be trained in how to teach it in the classroom. Over the last decade DFID have funded a number of research projects aimed at producing effective RSE resources for teachers, focussing on materials for primary school children, typically aged between 5 to 12.
TRL worked with the Ghana Road Safety Council to develop and evaluate materials for children and teachers in the final year of primary school in Ghana. This resulted in TRL Overseas Road Note 17 ‘Good Practice Guidelines’ which provides detailed advice and guidance to senior administrators and policy makers for providing RSE in primary schools (reported in issue 5). This was extended, in collaboration with the Central Institute for Road Transport (CIRT), with the development of materials for first year primary children in Pune in India (TRL report 442). More recently a British Council project funded by DFID ‘Uganda In-Country Training Programme – Developing road safety education resources for primary school children’ produced a road safety curriculum and teacher’s guide for all seven years of primary education, with materials based on the use of flip-charts - a medium particularly suited for teaching RSE to young children in poor countries.
DFID remains committed to extending this important programme to other countries, to provide resources for children of all ages, and to those who do not attend school.
For further information contact: Allan Quimby, TRL
Tel: +44 (0)1344 770898
Email: international_enquiries@trl.co.uk
DFID Project References: R6890, " Road Safety Education in Developing Country Schools and
Communities"
Theme Objective T1

Decentralization of road administration in poor countries

A study of decentralization of road administration in poor countries has been undertaken for DFID. This included field studies in Nepal, Uganda and Zambia.
The study has looked particularly at administrative decentralization, although issues of political, fiscal and management decentralization were also considered. Different administrative decentralization models were investigated, including that involving a road fund. Recommendations are made about which models offer the
greatest chance of success in terms of their ability to reflect local priorities, their achievement of market discipline, their scale of operations, and the simplicity of their decision-making linkages.
Evidence from the case studies suggests that decentralization has resulted in few of the expected advantages. Whereas there are some positive outcomes resulting from the road sub-sector reform process in central government, these changes are not yet being reflected in the decentralized bodies which, to some extent, are
making matters worse. The issue is not so much a problem of decentralization per se, but more one of how decentralization has been applied in practice. Problems include a lack of local government powers to exercise political influence, insufficient financial resources, a lack of management capability, and a lack of
accountability mechanisms.
Data on poverty issues are limited, but suggest that there is little evidence of decentralized systems being particularly responsive to vulnerable groups, including the poor. The results conclude that decentralization, as currently practised, tends to reinforce existing patterns of uneven development. Thus the study has not been able to establish a direct link between decentralization and improved governance or poverty reduction. More active identification and involvement of the poor in the planning and implementation processes is required
if much of the above is to be addressed.
The study suggests that the basic nature of road networks makes the process of managing the sub-sector more complex than for some other types of infrastructure. Furthermore, the management of maintenance, operations and renewals is more complex than managing new works. These findings have important implications for
decentralization.
For further information contact: Richard Robinson or David Stiedl
Email: RobinsonUK@compuserve.comor tashi@globalnet.co.uk
DFID Projects Reference: R7437: ‘Decentralization of Road Administration’
Theme Objective: T4

 

Estimating global road fatalities

As part of the GRSP programme, an update of global road fatality estimates was made byRL, co-funded by the World Bank, DFID and TRL and reported in TRL Report 445. The report also includes an estimate of the economic cost involved, regional analyses and casualty trends by age, sex and road user type.
Available data were updated for 1999 and adjusted for under reporting. The revised estimates show that about three quarters of a million lives were lost in 1999 with 86% of them occurring in low income and transitional nations where 40% of the world’s motor vehicles are located. Road deaths are on the increase in several of the low income regions whereas road deaths have fallen in highly motorised countries. The global cost in 1999 was estimated to be US$500 billion with US$60 billion incurred in low income and transitional countries.

Males were found to account for the majority of road fatalities, most of which occur in the prime of life. While females may not be the primary victim, they are often affected by the loss of a husband or father which can have devastating effects (both financial and social) on a family. The study highlighted the limitations of police
statistics and the limited use of accident data. It recommends the use of alternative safety indicators, such as the number of safety audits or number of remedial measures implemented and places less reliance on casualty statistics with more priority being given to the collection of injury data, especially by hospitals. It also urges more research to be conducted on the dissemination and application of accident data in low-income countries.
For further information contact: Goff Jacobs or Amy Aeron-Thomas, TRL
Tel: +44 (0)1344 770943
Email:international_enquiries@trl.co.uk

Under reporting of road traffic casualties

The problem of under-reporting of road accidents has long been recognised in the UK and other highly motorised countries, but it is believed to be much worse in low-income countries where incentives for reporting, e.g. legal or insurance requirements, are less enforced.
DFID-funded research by TRL has studied the extent and causes of under-reporting of road traffic casualties by comparing hospital data with official police records. The study found official statistics under-estimated the human problem, often seriously so, with reporting (i.e. the percent of hospital treated road casualties reported by police) estimated to range from between 3-12% in Dhaka, 17-33% in Hanoi and 24-53% in Bangalore.
It was recommended that road traffic casualties should be reported by hospitals in a similar manner to other major causes of illness and death. Police should give higher priority to liasing with hospitals, and allow junior officers (both general and traffic police) to report (but not investigate) road accidents. To avoid under-estimating
the severity of the problem, the data should refer to “reported road traffic accidents” and adjustment factors should be used in cost benefit analyses of safety measures.

For further information contact: Amy Aeron-Thomas, TRL
Tel: +44 (0)1344 770140 Email:international_enquiries@trl.co.uk

DFID Project Reference: R 6883
“Accident Recording, Investigation & Evaluation Systems”
Theme Objective T1


Global Road Safety Partnership (Update)

Launched in February 1999, the Global Road Safety Partnership (GRSP) is a network of businesses, civil society organisations and relevant government ministries, working together to promote road safety world-wide.
Established under the World Bank’s Business Partners for Development (BPD) programme, it now has its headquarters in Geneva, where it is hosted by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC).
GRSP receives positive support from DFID and seeks to identify and publicise good practice and lessons learned from projects involving the business sector. GRSP is also in the process of developing and implementing new demonstration projects in the following countries.

Africa	Asia	Central / Eastern Europe	Latin America	Middle East
Ghana	India	Hungary	Brazil	Jordan
South Africa	Malaysia	Poland	Costa Rica	Lebanon
Zambia	Thailand	Romania		Syria
	Vietnam

DFID on behalf of GRSP commissioned TRL and Ross Silcock, a member of Babtie group, to carry out a global review of road safety management. Surveys of country practices are currently underway with an aim to disseminate best practice.
GRSP is always keen to learn of new examples of business sector involvement in delivering road safety programmes.
For further information contact: Brett Bivans, GRSP Co-ordinator
Tel: +44 (0)4122 7304249 Fax: +44 (0)4122 7330395
Email: grsp@ifrc.org

 

Improving soil engineering properties with additives

Investment in road infrastructure in developing countries has recently been concentrated in rural areas, where roads are relatively lightly trafficked (below 200 vehicles per day). These roads are often constructed with locally available, sub-standard materials, more susceptible than standard materials to erosion or deformation by traffic in wet weather.
Increasingly, proprietary chemical stabilisation products including ionic soil stabilisers such as sulphonated petroleum products (SPP’s) are being marketed as a cost effective solution for improving the durability of rural paved and unpaved roads. Most of the products available on the market claim to improve compaction, strength and durability of the road-building materials. TRL, in collaboration with the CSIR in South Africa, have undertaken a DFID-funded study to examine the effects of additives on a range of materials and develop a strategy whereby
engineers can make rational judgement on the selection and use of such additives. Field studies carried out in South Africa and the Middle East have shown that, where additives have been used, both densities and strengths can be significantly higher than control sections containing no additive. If additives are to be used routinely, practitioners need to fully understand:

• composition of the various products (most manufacturers remain secretive about the composition of the additives)
• how and why they react with particular soils and importantly, why in some cases they do not
• suitability of standard engineering procedures to evaluate product suitability (standard tests such as CBR are only effective where significant strength changes occur)
• methodology of mix design (matching products to soils and in the correct concentrations) and the suitability of existing specifications
• environmental and safety issues (SPP’s are acidbased)
• working methods and curing procedures
• life cycle cost analysis based on controlled performance studies

Much of this information is generally made available to the practitioner by the manufacturers or their representatives. However, the advice being issued as a result of the research to date is for practitioners to seek a product performance guarantee from the suppliers when contemplating the use of chemical additives. To develop confidence in the use of these stabilisers and to formulate acceptable performance guarantee criteria, data need to be collected from properly researched and controlled field performance studies.

For further information contact: Tony Greening, or Colin Gourley, TRL
Tel/Fax: +263 4 4726631, +44 (0) 1344 770491
Email: international_enquiries@trl.co.uk
DFID Projects Reference: R6896: ‘Innovative compaction technology for low volume roads’
Theme Objective: T2

Better design for highway slopes in tropical soils

Tropical residual soils are formed in place by the profound weathering of parent rock and generally exhibit good strength characteristics because of good interparticle bonding and matric suction in the unsaturated zone.
However, heavy downpours penetrate into the exposed soil in slope cuttings, especially on newly constructed slopes, reducing its shear strength and often resulting in major landslides and sometimes loss of life.
A recent DFID-funded research project has developed a methodology for optimising slope designs through these soils, in terms of safety (minimise the likelihood of failure) and economics (minimise construction and maintenance costs). The research suggests that safer and more economical slopes can be achieved by constructing at, or close to, the vertical in some residual soils.
The proposed methodology utilises already available software together with fundamental knowledge of how residual soils behave. The methodology of analysis is as follows:
• Wetting band (deteriorated zone due to water infiltration) is calculated using standard geotechnical data.
• Slope analyses are run using appropriate soil properties for the wet and dry zone and the resulting factors of safety are converted into failure probabilities.
• Failure probabilities for highway cuts are calculated.
• Distribution of failure probability with age of highway cut is calculated.
• Whole life cost analysis is carried out based on failure probability and construction/maintenance costs using a suitable discount rate.
Geotechnical data for Malaysian, Kenyan and Zimbabwean soils have been used to validate the methodology with promising results. The new design approach could produce optimal highway cuts in residual soils, resulting in reduced whole life costs. In addition to producing direct savings for the highway authority, this technique can
aid improved road condition and access.
For further information contact: Dr C Holt, University of Birmingham
Tel: +44 (0)121 4145142 Fax: +44 (0)121 4143674
Email: c.c.holt@bham.ac.uk
DFID Projects Reference: R7114: ‘Optimisation of Cuts in Residual Soils’

 

Electronic conference on urban public transport

Entitled “Urban public transport and sustainable livelihoods”, this electronic conference took place by email during September and October 2000. Its aim was to discuss issues related to the linkages between urban public transport and ‘sustainable livelihoods’ and to present findings from a DFID funded research project “Partnerships to Improve Access and Quality of Public Transport for the Urban Poor”, a study based in Karachi, Pakistan. A report entitled “Urban public transport and Sustainable Livelihoods for the poor” a case study: Karachi,Pakistan, is available from Loughborough University.
Approximately 100 participants took part in the first phase which was led by Dr Sohail of WEDC, who encouraged and provided the stimulus for participation by suggesting topics and ideas which emanated from the research findings and DFID’s own ideas and perceptions on the Sustainable Livelihoods approach.
Further phases included a discussion of the lessons learned and future direction of research in this area and were equally successful. The e-conference format brought together various stakeholders, such as NGO’s,
researchers, government staff and consultants, to discuss practical elements behind urban transport provision, and provided an opportunity to voice comments and share experiences in relation to urban public transport services. A synthesis report will be produced and although the conference has ended, the forum will remain open for further discussions.
For further information contact: Dr. M.Sohail, WEDC
Tel: +44 (0)1509 222885
E-mail: M.Sohail@lboro.ac.uk
Web Site:
www.infolboro.ac.uk/departments/cv/wedc/index

REAAA Tokyo 2000

The 10 th Conference of the Road Engineering Association of Asia and Australia (REAAA) was held in Tokyo, Japan, in September, 2000.
The main theme of the event was “Road development for the 21st Century” with particular attention given to the new challenge of optimising the allocation of investment under the critical economic situationprevailing in Asia.
Seven papers were contributed by TRL on DFID funded projects, some of which were co-funded by the World Bank and the Indonesian Government.
For further information contact: TRL
Email: international_enquiries@trl.co.uk

 

Implementing HDM-4 across the world

HDM-4, the Highway Development a Management System, is software for investigating road investment choices. It will enable managers of road network assets to investigate the possibilities for providing cost-effective development and upkeep of their road system, bringing benefits to the communities that they serve.
The World Road Association (PIARC) manages the International Study of Highway Development and
Management Tools - the ISOHDM Project. Its current focus is on:
• producing and disseminating product updates;
• fostering training and dissemination activities;
• fostering the growth of HDM-4 regional and international user communities;
• supporting the ever-growing HDM-4 Information Centre on the World Wide Web
The HDM-4 products, which include the HDM Series documents, the HDM-4 software and associated case study data sets, were released in Version 1.0 in March 2000 with an update (Version 1.1) issued in August 2000. So far, almost 500 copies of the software have been purchased.
The global distribution of interest from potential users, as shown by almost 700 registrations from 106 countries, is shown in the figure. While HDM technology is equally suitable for application in both developed and developing countries, PIARC has a particular interest in encouraging its use in developing countries and transition economies. A total of 61 of these special consideration countries accounts for 31% of the interests expressed by individuals.
ISOHDM encourages and coordinates training activities provided by local training suppliers in all regions of the world, and already training or awareness events have been scheduled in at least 21 countries.
A major training project has been the development and delivery of a broad Training and Dissemination Strategy in the Asian region. Currently, ISOHDM is promoting a similar training strategy development for the Latin American region, with TRL guidance.
The formation and growth of country or regional user groups is encouraged. These can bring benefits through coordination of local calibration and customisation efforts, publication of regional case studies and localised default data sets, and other user interactions. Organised regional user activities are starting to emerge, for example in northern and eastern Europe, Australia, Japan and in the Latin American region.
PIARC’s HDM-4 web site at http://hdm4.piarc.org provides information about the ISOHDM project and HDM-4 products, user support information, access to the user resources and contact network, ISOHDM documents, and a resource download service.
For further information contact: ISOHDM Project
Secretariat at the World Road Association,
Tel: +33 (0)147 968187
Fax: +33 (0)149 000202
Email: hdm4@piarc.org
Web Site: www.hdm4.piarc.org


HDM-4 training in Asia

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) have let a contract for Training and Dissemination of HDM-4 in the Asia Pacific Region. The project,awarded to TRL, in association with the Centre for Rural Development and T raining at W olverhampton University (CRDT), University of Birmingham and IKRAM, the institute of training and research in
Malaysia, aims to achieve a sustainable approach to the adoption and ef fective use of HDM-4 in the region.
The project has three key objectives: to develop a training and development strategy for HDM-4 for the next 5 years, to develop training and dissemination materials in support of this strategy and to deliver a training programme in the Asia Pacific region.
The project is now in the second phase. A strategy has been developed and a T rain the T rainers course held at
IKRAM for 25 selected trainers from 9 countries in the region. The project will now provide support to the in-country courses to be held in these tar get countries, aiming to provide sustainable development and improvement of road management.
For further information contact:
Greg Morosiuk, TRL
Tel: +44 (0)1344 770036
E-mail: international_enquiries@trl.co.uk


RECENT PUBLICATIONS
BOOKS
Urban Public Transport and Sustainable Livelihoods for the Poor - A Case Study: Karachi, Pakistan. Edited by M Sohail, WEDC, ISBN: 0 906055 76 8, Price £14.96 + P&P. Available from WEDC.