How effective are speed bumps for traffic control?

Speed is one of the main factors that lead to vehicular accidents in the UK. It can be responsible for serious injuries and even death on all kinds of roads. In addition, it can cause lots of property damage and have a big impact on congestion. To tackle the problem, there are a number of different traffic control measures. This can include speed limits, traffic lights, roundabouts, and speed bumps. The latter are very popular, but how effective are they?

How do they work?

Before we look at effectiveness, it is a good idea to go over how they work. Most people have seen speed bumps before. They create a vertical deflection that forces drivers to slow down. If they didn't and they hit a bump at high speed it could seriously damage the vehicle and hurt the driver and passengers. Even driving over the bumps at slow speed is pretty uncomfortable, so most drivers will slow down sufficiently.

Effective and low cost

In most cases speed bumps can effectively force drivers to slow down to between 15 and 20 mph. That is a great result for many reasons. Firstly it means any accidents at that slower speed would be less likely to be fatal. Secondly, the slow speed gives the drivers more time to react in case there is an issue such as someone walking into the road or a vehicle pulling out.

What you will typically see is a series of the bumps along a road to make drivers maintain a slower speed. They can be effective here thanks to the spacing. Keeping the gap between each bump down can mean the average speed stays between 25 and 30 mph because there isn't enough room to speed up above that.

Interestingly speed bumps are also a type of traffic control that doesn't lose effectiveness over time. Other methods can, including traffic lights and stop signs. In fact, lights can make issues worse as people may speed up to pass through them before they change to red.

The speed bumps are also one of the most cost effective options for traffic control. They are low cost to begin with and don't require much maintenance.

Talk to us about traffic control measures

Barrier Mart is a team with a great history in traffic calming. We are a specialist that can offer solutions for lots of different settings. As well as public and private roads this can include car parks, docks, warehouses, and more. In each setting we can deliver an array of measures to help reduce speed and the chance of accidents.

So, why not browse our website for traffic control products today? You can find speed bumps, barriers, and more. A combination of them could help you to tackle safety issues. You can also contact us if you have any questions or want some advice.