Speed Management Strategies; A Systematic Review.

OBJECTIVE: To systematically identify the various methods of speed management and their effects.

METHODS: A systematic search was performed in Science Direct, Ovid Medline, Scopus, PubMed and ProQuest databases from April to June 2015. Hand searching and reference of selected articles were used to improve article identification. Articles published after 1990 which had reported on efficacy/effectiveness of speed management strategies were included. Data were extracted using pre-defined extraction table.

RESULTS: Of the 803 retrieved articles, 22 articles were included in this review. Most of the included articles (63%) had before-after design and were done in European countries. Speed cameras, engineering schemes, intelligent speed adaption (ISA), speed limits and zones, vehicle activated sign and integrated strategies were the most common strategies reported in the literature. Various strategies had different effects on mean speed of the vehicles ranging from 1.6 to 10 km/h. Moreover, 8-65% and 11-71% reduction was reported in person injured accidents and fatal accidents, respectively as a result of employing various strategies.

CONCLUSION: Literature revealed positive effects of various speed management strategies. Using various strategies was mostly dependent on road characteristics, driver's attitude about the strategy as well as economic and technological capabilities of the country. Political support is considered as a main determinant in selecting speed management strategies.