Game-changing technology to design traffic lights that absorb kinetic energy, stopping them from crumpling when hit by a vehicle, will prevent thousands of fatalities and injuries each year and make our roads much safer.
That's the prediction from University of South Australia (UniSA) senior lecturer and research lead Dr Mohammad Uddin, who is partnering with manufacturing company Impact Absorbing Systems (IAS) on a new project to minimise collision-related injuries as well as damage to traffic lights and vehicles.
The $640,000 project, partially funded by the Innovative Manufacturing CRC (IMCRC), will leverage IAS's expertise in road safety and UniSA's engineering design and advanced manufacturing skills to ensure traffic lights absorb a high-impact crash, remain undamaged and operational, and save pedestrian and motorists' lives.
The technology involves replicating existing IAS-fabricated energy absorbing bollards and tuning the design to better suit the shape, length and size of common traffic lights, while satisfying regulatory standards. "Recent statistics show that in Australia, traffic light collisions cost $18.5 million a year in fatalities, $53.7 million for injuries and up to $16 million annually to repair, install and maintain traffic lights," Dr Uddin says. Worldwide, the figure is much higher.
What are the functions of traffic lights that absorb kinetic energy?