The safety impact of land use changes resulting from bypass road constructions

This paper analyzes the effect of bypass construction on road safety, specifically crash rates on bypass segments and in bypassed communities. It further investigates the effect of bypass construction on those communities’ economic development through changes in the number and spatial distribution of businesses and residential development, and examines whether these changes affect the road-safety level. Finally, it evaluates the effect on road safety of various traffic arrangements implemented in such communities. Drawing on an extensive data collection, the study focuses on Arab cities in the Galilee region of Israel, using cross-sectional and longitudinal analysis.The results show that bypass construction does not necessarily reduce overall crash frequencies or crash rates. It merely shifts road crashes from the highways (the bypass roads) to inner roads (bypassed) and from there to local traffic, with no significant reduction. The findings indicate a large variance in the effects of bypass constructions on safety.

► We analyze the effect of the construction of bypass roads on three Israeli Arab towns.
► We examine changes on road crashes along the bypass roads and within the bypassed towns.
► Bypass construction does not necessarily reduce overall crash frequencies or crash rates.
► There is wide variation in the effects of bypass construction on road safety.
► Changes in land use following the construction of the bypass roads affect road safety levels.