The Spatio-Temporal Characteristics of Traffic Accidents on Mountainous Secondary Highways and Control Countermeasures

The combination of complicated road and traffic environment conditions on mountainous roads has caused many traffic accidents, where the occurrence of traffic accidents is up to 60% and the fatal accidents is up to 70%. Based on surveyed traffic accident data, traffic flow data, and road condition data of mountainous roads in Yunnan province, this paper presents temporal and spatial characteristics of traffic accidents on mountainous rural roads and its control countermeasures. The descriptive statistics were used to analyze the characteristics of technical grade, the combination of traffic flow, and the spatio-temporal distribution of traffic accidents. The effectiveness of the state-of-practice safety facilities are also investigated. Then, the complex relationship between traffic accidents and road conditions, traffic flow conditions, and safety facilities are explored, and the applicability of safety facilities and the potential weakness of operational management are discussed. Finally, the targeted control countermeasures of mountainous rural roads are proposed.