How Line Marking Impacts Road Safety and Reduces Accidents
The number of road accidents – and, more importantly, the number of casualties that result from road accidents – in the UK has been falling steadily for years. If you were to ask the average person why they thought this might be the case, they might suggest that it was down to the success of anti drink-driving campaigns, the increased use of speed cameras and, more recently, strict legislation targeting those using their mobile phones while behind the wheel.
What you might not have considered is that there are now more line markings on our roads than ever before, imparting valuable information on potential hazards that is making our roads safer for all. In this article, the Northern Marking team is going to explore why line marking is one of the least appreciated – yet often most effective – safety features on our roads.
Why are road line markings important?
Road markings give us vital information that helps us to drive safely. Many of those lines – from those that mark different lanes to those that tell us when it is and isn’t safe to overtake – are so ingrained in the consciousness of experienced drivers that most of us probably no longer give them a second thought.
However, there are line markings on our roads that can tell us a lot more. They can be used to create turning zones, indicate a change of speed limit or tell us which lane we need to be in as we approach a large roundabout or other junction. These markings are especially important when you’re negotiating an unfamiliar route, because they can eliminate the hesitation that can catch out other drivers and result in accidents.
How do road line markings reduce accidents?
Research in the USA has shown that an incredible 51% of their road fatalities between 2016 and 2018 were due to ‘roadway departure’ (RwD) – basically, when a vehicle crosses an edge or centre line.
Of course, many US roads are very different to ours – they have many more multi-lane highways plus very long, very straight country roads that can easily lead to fatigue at the wheel. Both of these can lead to an increased potential for drivers to veer out of their designated lanes.
Nevertheless, those figures do suggest that, without those simple lines down the middle of single-lane highways or between lanes on motorways, casualty figures could be much higher. Quite simply, they are a simple but effective visual tool that tells us where we need to be and keeps us out of the way of other drivers.
Another road marking solution that you might have come across – chiefly on motorways and busy dual carriageways – is the chevrons that help us measure how far we should stay behind the vehicle ahead. The Highway Code has important information on stopping distances, but most of us probably forget them as soon as we pass our tests – and, anyway, distances in metres when travelling at speed can be hard to visualise. Those chevrons are another helpful visual tool that can enable us to drive more safely, even at high speeds.
Today, we are seeing more and more road markings that promote safety. This is partly due to the increased use of ‘self-explaining roads’. First developed in the Netherlands in the 1990s, a self-explaining road is a “traffic environment which elicits safe behaviour simply by its design”. While this can include many other elements in the environment, good road markings play a vital role in the concept.
One great example of this is a Scottish project – Perceptual Rider Information for Maximising Expertise and Enjoyment (PRIME) – that won the Road Safety Scheme of the Year at the 2023 Highways Award. The team involved developed road markings that could indicate to motorcyclists the best line to take when entering a dangerous bend.
Keeping road line markings visible
Once they’re in place, road markings can take a lot of wear and tear, both from traffic and the weather. This means that over time they can become worn and unclear. This has the potential to be at least as dangerous as a complete absence of road markings, as it may lead to drivers becoming distracted as they try to interpret unclear information.
It is important, therefore, that those responsible for the maintenance of roads do all they can to ensure that these markings are regularly refreshed.
Northern Marking is based in Manchester, but provides services to clients in the following areas; Huddersfield, Blackburn, Rochdale, Preston and beyond. Northern Marking is a leading road marking company, providing the following services; line marking, school & playground markings, warehouse markings, electric car parking space marking, line removal, white lining and car park markings.
Here at Northern Marking, we provide road marking services on public highways for local authorities in and around Manchester and the wider North West region. With twenty years of experience and expertise in the line marking industry, we use state-of-the-art materials to achieve impressive, long-lasting results every time.
