S. M. SOHEL Mahmud

Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology | BUET · Accident Research Institute (ARI)

• Crash data for LGED roads is highly underreported and completely unreliable. • Surrogate approaches such as traffic conflict study could be a good alternative to evaluate the safety performance. • Speed calming devices need to be placed considering the functionality of the road, road geometry, road environment, traffic composition and road users’...

The quantity of motor-bikers has dramatically expanded in Bangladesh, with the presentation of the ridesharing business. Consequently, crashes involving a motorcycle with fatalities and injuries are also increasing. One of the proven most effective safety measures for a biker is the use of a helmet. But there is no study on the use of helmets and t...

Analysis of helmet use behavior in traffic safety is a critical aspect of improving motorcycle riding safety. Machine learning has made significant progress in recent years, but its potential to model helmet use behavior is still largely unexploited. As a result, this study aims to compare various machine learning approaches (support vector machine...

Pedestrians are always the most vulnerable road victims in terms of crash involvement. In low-motorized developing countries like Bangladesh, this problem is disproportionately higher, particularly in an urban setting. Therefore, there is a need to develop a pragmatic strategy to arrest this problem with a proper understanding of their behavior, at...

Transport plays a major role in spreading contagious diseases such as COVID-19 by facilitating social contacts. Standard response to fighting COVID-19 in most countries has been imposing a lockdown – including on the transport sector – to slow down the spread. Though the Government of Bangladesh also imposed a lockdown quite early, it was forced to...

Pedestrians are always the most vulnerable road victim in terms of crash involvement and injuries. In low motorized developing countries like Bangladesh, this problem is disproportionately higher, particularly in urban setting. Pedestrian itself accounting for nearly 50 percent of road fatalities in Bangladesh. In urban areas, it is varied between...

Over the recent couple of years, the quantity of motor-bikers has dramatically expanded in Bangladesh, with the presentation of ride-sharing business. Consequently, crashes involving motorcycle with fatalities and injuries are also increasing, where the most vulnerable group is young generation known as the most productive group of the nation. In 2...

Pedestrian fatality and injury is one of the most concerning issues around the globe. The predictors for such mishaps have been investigated in the developed countries through econometric models and are proven useful techniques. Such studies in the context of developing countries, especially for urban cities, are however still very scarce. Using fi...

Introduction: Driver behavior related to overtaking maneuvers, which are considered a major safety risk determinant on two-lane two-way highway in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC), are an important subject of further analysis. This study evaluates safety risk in terms of nature and severity of probable conflicts during overtaking maneuvers...

Road crashes and resulting casualties have induced Dhaka, the capital of a developing country in South Asia-Bangladesh, as one of the most vulnerable urban settings. One in every five crashes of the country takes place in Dhaka. It is therefore utmost important to evaluate the safety problem appropriately and identify the risk factors pragmatically...

Road crashes and consequent casualties seem to have made an enduring place in Bangladesh. Although the official statistics exclaims around 2,500 fatalities and 3,000 grievous and simple injuries each year, the true magnitude is yet to be confirmed. In contrast to this official crash record, few studies have projected extremely high fatality estimat...

Almost all of the past studies in this topic are confined to the lane based homogeneous traffic environments in developed countries using reported crash data (1,2). In this paper, a new model 3 is put forward to predict the most hazardous sections for non-lane based heterogeneous traffic environment using surrogate safety measures considering the p...

There have been number of researches that have developed crash prediction models (CPM) using statistical approaches to explore the relationship between the occurrence of crash and its influencing factors. However, almost all of the past studies are confined to the lane based homogeneous traffic environments in developed countries. Moreover, the pas...

The nature of overtaking maneuvers and associated safety risk on a two-lane undivided highway in heterogeneous traffic environment has been evaluated in this study. Different parameters have been assessed including: overtaking strategies by vehicle types; duration and distance of overtaking; as well as time and distance gaps between involved vehicl...

In this paper, an attempt has been made to present the magnitude and trends of the road safety problem and the prevailing accident characteristics in Bangladesh. This paper also reviews some major road safety initiatives undertaken by different governmental and non-governmental actors in recent years to control and reduce road traffic accidents and...

Multi-modal integrated transportation system is crucial for ensuring efficient, safe and sustainable mobility of a modern mega city like Dhaka. Unfortunately, in Dhaka city the existing modes and submodes (bus-water-rail-NMT) are acting independently of each other. The share of intercity passenger by different modes bus, train and water are 76, 9 a...

Transport is an important component of economic activity in all countries but especially so in Bangladesh and other developing countries. It provides access to jobs, education, health care, agricultural and other services. Typically transport accounts for 5-10% expenditure of GNP and contributes to 10-25% of GNP. So the potential for enhanci...

The modeling of driver speed choice behavior on a rural highway with heterogeneous traffic environment in a developing country is reported. The study explores the application of a latent class model as an alternative methodological approach, to relate factors such as road geometry, roadside environment, traffic mix and operational characteristics w...

Road safety is a global concern particularly in developing countries where some road sections are disproportionately more vulnerable in terms of the frequency and severity of crashes. Other than using historical crash data based reactive approaches, those sections need to be identified proactively, so that mitigation measures can be applied. Moreov...

The main aim of this thesis is to develop alternative tools for safety analysis using surrogate safety measures considering traffic conditions in developing countries. To achieve this goal, the major tasks included: the assessment of alternative approaches; safety risk analysis and modelling using reported crashes and estimated conflicts; as well a...

This paper deals with the speed choice behaviour of driver on a two-lane bidirectional highway in a heterogeneous traffic environment of a developing country. The major contribution of the paper is the identification and quantification of significant attributes influencing speed choice of a driver at micro-level of the road under study. The latter...

Introduction: There have been a number of studies that have led to the development of safety risk assessment models to quantify the probability of crash frequencies on roadway facilities (both at micro- and macro-levels), over a specified time period. However, past research has rarely focused on heterogeneous traffic conditions in developing count...

GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT HIGHLIGHTS • Road safety problems of Jamuna Bridge and its approach roads are investigated. • Traffic operational and behavioural characteristics are analyzed. • Hazardous Road Locations (HRL) are identified. • Measures for improving the likelihood of accidents are suggested. • Application of surrogate safety measures as an alter...

In the study reported here, the nature of overtaking manoeuver and associated safety risk on a two-lane undivided highway in an heterogeneous traffic environment has been evaluated. Different parameters have been assessed including: overtaking strategies by vehicle types; duration and distance of overtaking; as well as time and distance gaps betwee...

This paper critically reviews micro-simulation modelling applications for traffic safety evaluation with respect to the use of different simulation tools, the application of surrogate safety indicators under different aspects of road environments and crash considerations. General input variables used to develop the models; key parameters for crash...

Social, economic and infrastructure losses due to road traffic accidents and their consequences are very significant all over the world, particularly in developing countries. The evaluation of causative factors of accidents and the selection of remedial measures continues to be based mainly on traditional approaches. Whereas, accident statistics ar...

Road traffic crashes have significant negative social, economic, and infrastructure consequences, particularly in developing countries. The methods for evaluating the causal factors to identify appropriate interventions and to mitigate the problem are causes of great concern in those countries. One of the major reasons is that the evaluation method...

The economic and social costs due to road crashes are disproportionately higher in developing countries. In addition, underreporting, coupled with an incomplete and inconsistent recording of reported crashes is a major issue in such settings. A brief outline of the dimension of road safety problems in developing countries and the most common limita...

Although there have been a number of recent reviews on the use of traffic conflict techniques (TCTs), none have focused on the use of proximal surrogate indicators. This paper comprehensively reviews the development and application of proximal surrogate safety indicators to address this gap. There is a particular focus on more recent advancements i...

This paper deals with the speeding behaviour of vehicles on a two-lane bi-directional highway in a heterogeneous traffic environment. Data has been collected using the floating car method from a major national highway in Bangladesh. Speed data extracted second by second has been analysed for a range of short road segments. Different attributes rela...

Jumuna MultiPurpose Bridge (JMB) is playing a vital role in accelerating economic development in Bangladesh by creating significant accessibility and mobility potential between the capital city and Northern and Western parts of the country. However, the increasing frequency of severe road accidents on this corridor looms as a serious concern. On av...

Traditional TSE approaches, based on chronological data including classical before-after studies, mainstream/statistical modelling and/or person judgment based approaches, has a long history. Despite the robustness of this established technique, this has not always been appropriate, as crash statistics are frequently questioned. Poor timeline, ethi...

The common problem in rural areas of Banglades h is that, here most of the roads have been constructed on the land donated by local people. That is why the alignment is almost fixed and it is very hard to manage extra space for any other road features and geometry. The guidelines and technical standard s are hard to apply for the alignment of the r...

A preliminary crash report prepared by the police contains factual information known immediately after the crash and it is generally followed by a narrative investigation report. Different agencies use different formats for the preliminary Police Crash Reports. This paper compares the contents of the preliminary Police Crash Report forms of selecte...

In spite of great progress in international traffic safety works, traffic accidents still cause a large and increasing number of fatalities and severe injuries particularly in developing countries like Bangladesh. Sustained declining trends of road fatalities in the developed countries have been attributed to concerted efforts in many sectors inclu...

The proper institutional and organizational arrangements are required to handle and administer the functions and performance of transportation system. From 1906 to 1991, Dhaka's area grew by 58 fold and its population by more than 35 fold. Many organizations were formed to deal with this tremendous growth. There are about 51 organizations under fou...

Road safety is not only a national problem but also a regional problem. Area specific strategic improvement plan with coordination of local pleple and ensuring involvement of them in implementation is significantly important to get sustainable and tengible benefit. This paper will mainly share the learning, ideas, knowledge which have achieved from...

The construction of bridge superstructure is a highly complex process due to the interrelationship between the erection method used and the manifold internal and external effects related to loads and behavior and to environmental influence. At the time of construction of balanced cantilever bridge the moment in the bridge increases at each stage of...

In combating the man-made epidemic on road by traffic accidents and injuries, some major initiatives have been undertaken in Bangladesh in the past decade including policy formulation, research, education, legislation & sanctions, and engineering intervention. In comparison to the magnitude of the problems, the progresses are very slow due to enorm...

The overall fatality and casualty figure of children due to road accidents in Bangladesh is very alarming and accounting for about 21% in the last twelve years (1998-2009). Most the victims involved in the mishaps are of less than 16 years of age. This toll is much higher than those in other developing countries. Road safety education for children...

Since 1896, the first recorded road traffic death in London, around 30 million lives have been lost due to road traffic accidents and millions of people have been injured and crippled. At present, road traffic injuries are the leading cause of death by injury, the eleventh leading cause of all deaths and the ninth leading contributor to the burden...

Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh has facing enormous transport as well as mobility problem due to the huge deficiencies in different fields including colossal operation of massive number of rickshaws non-motorized vehicle (three wheeler rickshaws) and excessive dependency on that of the city dwellers. Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) officially limits...

Transportation System Management (TSM) is a package of short term measures to make the most productive and cost-effective use of existing transportation facilities, services and modes. For the implementation of such well recognized, cost-effective management tools in a city area demand assessment of the potentiality and the fulfillment of implement...

Recently, different types of speed reducing formal and informal devices are introduced on the different types of roads and highways in Bangladesh. Though, most of the physical devices are not properly designed and installation process is not pre-planned, that's have significant positive and negative impact on safety performance of the road. But, fo...

Road traffic accidents are one of the major causes of death, injuries and disabilities in all over the world both in developed and developing countries. The official statistics revealed that the accident fatality rate is very high indicating more than 60 deaths per 10,000 motor vehicles in Bangladesh. Heavy vehicles such as trucks and buses are the...

The highway system of Bangladesh faces enormous challenges of providing equitable level of service and act as accident prone highway system for the absence of appropriate policy, absence of guidance and control on road configuration which results lack of functional and classical hierarchy of road network, huge road and road side hazards which is in...

The problem resulting from road traffic accidents, injuries and property lose is an emerging, challenging and one of the major concerning issues in Bangladesh like many other developing countries in the world. To counteract this problem, road safety research has proven beneficial in documenting the road accident problem, appraising the current situ...

Road accident is a global trauma and like many other countries in the world Bangladesh also suffers a great deal due to road accidents every year. With the growth of motorization, urbanization and hence number of road users, the number of accidents and fatalities on road are increasing with the passage of time. Proper and rational rates of accident...

The Dhaka-Aricha highway plays a vital role in interregional road transport in Bangladesh but unfortunately, this corridor is the most hazardous corridor in terms of accidents and fatalities per kilometer. According to police reported accident record, every year almost 180 accidents and 120 fatalities occurred on this 75 km segment of the national...

Road traffic injuries are one of the major causes of mortality, morbidity and disability in Bangladesh. About one-fifth of injury related hospital admissions are due to road traffic accidents. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), nearly 20,000 deaths from road traffic crashes are estimated to occur annually in Bangladesh, while around...

Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh and the nation's gateway as well as the economic, business, political, administrative, social, cultural hub of the country, has now been turned into the 26th mega city and 10th most populous city in the world. The city experiences rapid growth of scattered and unplanned development (73% fully unplanned) without appr...

Road infrastructure safety design and engineering have now emerged as the core function of contemporary road transport safety policies. Developing countries like Bangladesh however have been slower in devising and adopting such approach and many roads still remain substandard. In Bangladesh, nearly 70% of road accident fatalities occurred in rural...

Bangladesh is a country in South Asia and is a very densely populated country with about 150 million inhabitants living in an area of 147570 sq. km. Road accidents are increasing alarmingly taking heavy toll of human lives and personal injuries. Over 10,000 deaths and 200,000 serious injuries from road crashes are estimated to occur annually in Ban...

Bangladesh is a country in South Asia and is a very densely populated country with about 150 million inhabitants living in an area of 147570 sq. km. Road accidents are increasing alarmingly taking heavy toll of human lives and personal injuries. Over 10,000 deaths and 200,000 serious injuries from road crashes are estimated to occur annually in Ban...

Bangladesh has a very serious and deteriorating road safety problem. While about 4000 deaths annually are reported to the police, it is estimated that over 10,000 deaths resulting from road crashes occur annually. Bangladesh with the lowest motorization level has the worst fatality rate (deaths/10,000 motor vehicles) of the region. The annual socio...

Bangladesh is a very densely populated and low lying country in South Asia with 150 million inhabitants living in an area of 147570 sq. km. i.e. around 1000 inhabitants live per sq. km. Around 70 percent of the population lives in rural areas. With its agrarian and rural oriented economy, an adequate network of rural roads is of vital importance to...

Road traffic accident deaths in Asia and the Pacific are alarming when compared with the rest of the world. Almost half of the world's 1.3 million road fatalities occur in the Asia-Pacific region and many developing nations like Bangladesh are facing worsening situation. Significant efforts at research, development and innovations are urgently need...

Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh and the nation’s gateway, has now been turned into the 26th Mega city and 10th most populous city in the world. The development processes of Dhaka city rapidly increased with tremendous growth of population and physical expansion, over 30 and 20 times respectively within the period of 1951 to 2001. Unfortunately, th...

Dhaka is the capital of Bangladesh and the nation's gateway, as well as face of the country, has now been turned into the 26th Mega City and 10th most populous city in the world. The city experiences the proliferation of scattered development without appropriate guidance resulting in urban system difficulties. The lack of integration between land-u...

Essentially "Safety Design and Engineering" has now emerged as the core function of contemporary road transport safety policies. Developing countries like Bangladesh however have been slower in devising and adopting such approach and many roads still remains substandard. There is widespread disregard of explicit safety considerations in the road pl...

Road traffic accidents and injuries have now emerged as a serious man-made epidemic with an estimated 1.3 million people killed and as many as 50 million injured worldwide each year. Accidents are particularly prevalent in low and middle income countries-around 85 percent of the world's deaths occur in developing countries like Bangladesh. More tha...

The most striking characteristic of the global road safety problem is that more than 85 percent of global road deaths (96% of child deaths) and injuries occur each year in low and middle income countries. The vast majority of these casualties are vulnerable road users comprising of pedestrians, motorcyclists and bi-cyclists. Of all road accident de...

The rapid rise in population along with increased and versatile land use patterns and increase in motor vehicle ownership along with non-motorized vehicles on streets have resulted in enormous travel demand and traffic congestion in Dhaka, the Capital city of Bangladesh. The demographic trends of the last decade that have resulted in rapid populati...

With increasing trends in urbanization of developing countries the major cities are facing serious challenges of sustainable transport development. Sustainable transportation strategies are those that can meet the basic mobility needs of all and be sustained into the foreseeable future without any adverse impact on environment and the societal well...

Bicycle is one of the cheapest, healthy, environmental friendly and sustainable modes of transport with outstanding advantage of its availability for door-to-door trips and flexibility. With the increasing number of bicycle trips, the accidents and injuries of cyclists have increased significantly. According to police statistics, every year more th...

Historically engineering safety on roads has been a major concern of highway authorities for decades. Indeed safety design and engineering have now emerged as the core function of contemporary road transport safety policies. Developing countries like Bangladesh however have been slower in devising and adopting such approach and many roads still rem...

Efficient, speedy and safe transportation system is the prerequisite of economic development of a country. Although Bangladesh is a riverine country, road transport plays an important role here. But the road safety situation has been rapidly worsening in Bangladesh with the increasing number of road accident deaths and injuries largely as direct co...

Funding support in research and development activities in engineering and technology is indeed fundamental from national development perspective. Innovation of new ideas, technologies, products and services are essentially dependent on the continuous research and development. The paper reviews the research funding characteristics for the universiti...