CASE STUDIES OF SINGLE-VEHICLE ACCIDENTS ON RURAL ROADS

The purpose of the investigation was to expand upon the information obtainable from the South African Police accident records regarding single-vehicle accidents. The in-depth studies included visits to accident sites, questioning the various persons involved in the accidents and filling in a questionnaire for each accident. In all, 75 rural and 10 urban accidents were investigated. The information obtained from the accidents is presented in the form of tree diagrams. It is concluded that overturning accidents are mainly caused by lack of driving experience (inappropriate reactions such as oversteering, etc.) or lack of concentration or both, usually accompanied by high speed. The roadside and median surfaces were not always safely traversable by vehicles and objects were situated too close to the roadway providing drivers with less chance of controlling or stopping their vehicles. These findings will be used as guidelines for further studies on single-vehicle accidents.