TRF - 2018

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Browsing TRF - 2018 by Author "Amarasingha, N"

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    item: Conference-Abstract
    Evaluation of roadway-railway level crossings in main line from Colombo to Polgahawela
    (Department of Civil Engineering, University of Moratuwa., 2018-08) Ragulan, K; Amarasingha, N; Pasindu, HR
    When a railway line crosses a road or a path at the same level, it is called a Level Crossing (LC). The total length of the railway lines in Sri Lanka is approximately 1930 km (SLR, 2011). 1047 crossings have been reported. Out of these, 128 crossings are protected by electrical barriers and 139 are protected by mechanized barriers. A great amount (758) is manned by barriers while an amount as low as 17 are manned by farm type gates. About 151 gates have a bell and flash light system. There are about 457 unprotected gates in the country, accounting for 37%. The main objective of this study is to evaluate the railway-roadway LC safety, because a significant number of rail crashes are being reported in Sri Lanka at LC. Four years of railway crash data, LC characteristics, rail line characteristics, and highway characteristics, were collected at the main rail line from Colombo to Polgahawela. Special attention was paid to different types of LCs, focusing on their methods and their functional capacity. Furthermore, the shortcomings found in the system were analysed using data pertaining to the 62 LCs found between Colombo to Polgahawela. The details regarding these LCs, their nature, construction, location, and intermittent distances were obtained directly from the Railway department. Then linear regression models were used to identify whether these predictor variables, which successfully predict an outcome, crashes. The locations which had appalling shortcomings such as the unavailability of barriers found in the LC, the prolonging of the bell sound for a considerable time, the elderly being employed in unprotected LCs without their basic facilities or wages being ensured, LCs and roadways running parallel and road traffic getting entangled in the LC, and the view of approaching trains getting blocked by towering buildings and trees, were successfully identified. Based on the data collected, the locations that needed immediate attention were pointed out. Statistical analysis further showed that the distance to the nearest curvature from the direction of Colombo and Polgahawela, the sight distance from the upside and the bottom, availability of a passive protection system, have a significant influence on the occurrence of crashes. The main intention of this research is to minimize the number of accidents that occur at the crossing of main line. The sample taken for the study is convenient, due to the fact that the population can be accessed appropriately. The results can be considered as general, though there might be slight variations that could arise, as some of the LCs, especially in the rural areas of the country, have less trains and vehicles on roads. Furthermore, some solutions and recommendations have been put forward, taking into consideration the modern methods utilized in this field.
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    item: Conference-Abstract
    An observation study on un-signalized marked midblock crossings in Colombo suburban
    (Department of Civil Engineering, University of Moratuwa, 2018) Thevarajan, J; Amarasingha, N; Pasindu, HR
    A pedestrian crossing is a place designated for pedestrians to cross a road where they can cross safely across the flow of vehicular traffic. It also makes the pedestrians easy to be spotted by motorists, by keeping them together, and Mid-block pedestrian crossings are marked crosswalks placed between intersections. Before crossing, pedestrians check the traffic in right side, left side, then again, the right side. Drivers must slow down and stop when a pedestrian steps onto a marked crossing, giving way to him/her. Crossings with poor visibility have zigzag white lines marked in the middle of the road to warn drivers. The aim of this study is to investigate the pedestrian road crossing behaviour at uncontrolled midblock locations in Sri Lanka which operate under a mixed traffic condition. It was identified that all the unsignalized midblock crossings from Malabe to Kaduwela in B263 roadway of Sri Lanka operate under a mixed different traffic flow. The data on the gender and approximate age of the pedestrian, crossing pattern, mobile phone usage of pedestrians while crossing, the fact whether a weight is carried or not, and the crossing’s geometry, were collected. All these data were collected from Malabe end towards Kaduwela end, using a video survey method, covering all the pedestrian crossings. Each and every video footage was recorded during 8:00 am to 9:00 am in weekdays during the months of July and August, 2017. Each and every characteristic of crossing and pedestrians were compared using the statistical inference theory. The overall average waiting time at the road segment considered was 6.54 seconds. When investing the waiting time by age category, it was observed that waiting time of children is lower than other categories. Elders opposing to children had more waiting time than others. This showed that middle aged people were paying more attention when crossing the road than children or elderly people. Therefore, children need to be given more attention. Most people were willing to cross the road as groups. It may be due to safety reasons. When considering the crossing speed, results showed that crossing speed of children was higher than that of adults. Statistically significant speed differences between males and females were also observed. When a person individually crossed the road, the crossing speed was higher than when crossing as a pair or a group. Straight crosswalks are designed to minimize the pedestrians’ crossing distance and pedestrians are expected to walk straight. However, about 48% of pedestrians did not walk straight on the crossing. This study revealed pedestrian characteristics and differences between pedestrian groups at the uncontrolled midblock locations in Colombo suburban. The results of this study can be used for traffic safety improvement programs. For an example, advanced warning messages and higher slight distance could be suggested in the crosswalks where more children are expected, as children did not pay much attention in crossings. Awareness and education programs could be prepared, encouraging pedestrians to walk straight when crossing as 48% did not walk straight.