Relationships between urban planning variables and traffic crashes in Damascus

This study investigated the relationships between city planning and street network variables and traffic accidents at the zone level. Damascus, the capital of Syria, which consists of fourteen urban zones, was selected as a case study. For each zone, cross-sectional data on traffic accidents, vehicle-kilometres of travel (VKT), population, zone area, land-use developments, and street network variables were collected. Multivariate regression analyses were conducted to develop mathematical relationships that could have practical applications for use by city planners and traffic safety engineers. The results indicated that VKT, population density, percentage of open space, percentage of commercial frontages, distribution of public buildings, street network length, and intersection density were significantly related to the number of accidents in each urban zone. Indicators for estimating urban zone accidents were also derived, to remind city planners and traffic safety engineers of the potential impacts of some planning variables and urban characteristics on traffic safety in urban areas. While the specific results relate to the study city, they at least sound cautions about the need to consider the safety trade-offs implied in some urban form choices.