Analysis of Effects of Environmental Factors on Road Traffic Accidents in Nairobi,
Abstract
The study investigated the effects of environmental factors on road safety in Nairobi. The objectives of the study were to (a) assess the effect of environmental factors on road traffic accidents (RTAs) in Nairobi (b) analyse how lack of road signs and road crossing points contribute to motor and pedestrian road traffic accidents (RTAs) on the roads. Two (2) hypotheses were formulated and tested using collected data. They were (a) ‘there is no significant difference between wetness of the road and the number of RTAs’, (b) ‘there is no significant difference between pedestrian RTAs and lack of road signs and pedestrian crossings points’. Data was collected using questionnaires administered to randomly selected drivers and traffic police officers. Data was also obtained from Traffic police records. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics. Hypotheses were tested using chi-square test. The main findings of the study were that; (1) road conditions did not contribute significantly to RTAs. (2) lack of adequate pedestrian road crossing facilities and fences at black spots led to traffic crashes (3) pedestrians tend to ignore designated pedestrian traffic ways and safe road crossing points thereby being involved in RTAs, (4) absence of speed limit signs and speed limit bumps at black spots increases the occurrences of RTAs. The key recommendations of the study are: (a) road safety should be recognized as a national disaster and adequate funds allocated to deal with it (b) there should be enforcement of traffic rules (c) road designs should incorporate pedestrian crossing.