Comparison of the updated South African road safety assessment methods (sarsam 2022) with the South African road safety manual (sarsam 2012)

Abstract

The South African Road Safety Assessment Methods of 2022 (SARSAM 2022) replaced the previous South African Road Safety Audit Manual of 2012 (SARSAM, 2012). The SARSAM 2022 is part of the Technical Recommendations for Highways compiled under auspices of the Committee of Transport Officials (COTO), TRH 29. The Safe System Approach incorporates the principle that humans are frail and that the human body cannot withstand the kinetic energy that is transferred if a collision occurs without being killed or seriously injured. As such it is the responsibility of the road designer (authority) to design a road and road environment that is inherently safe. SARSAM 2012 was updated to incorporate the Safe System principles. The updated document now consists of three volumes which deals with Road Network Screening, Road Safety Inspections and Road Safety Audits. The accreditation of auditors by Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA) has progressed and has now been incorporated in the updated methods. This paper highlights the substantial changes that occurred with the updated document