Analysis of the impact of road infrastructure modernization on the structure of accidents

<ns3:p>The objective of the present study is to determine what impact the change in the road infrastructure, consisting in its expansion/modernization, has on the structure of road accidents. This is the case when a section of road infrastructure is expanded to include a new, higher-ranking road, and what impact this has had on road incidents on a road that has hitherto acted as the main link in the respective area. The practical value of the research results is the possibility of predicting the estimated number and types of road incidents that will occur after introducing changes to the road infrastructure. For this purpose, a research methodology was proposed, based on publicly available materials published by governmental organizations, i.e. data on road infrastructure, including road traffic volumes, and non-governmental organizations collecting information on road incidents. The research methodology was presented on the example of two selected sections of road infrastructure in Poland. Then, the structure of accidents before and after the change in the transport system was analyzed, and then, in accordance with the proposed formula, the accident rate was determined in the general variant and with the specification for heavy goods vehicles. The research results indicate a significant correlation between the development of road infrastructure and the increase in the level of road safety.</ns3:p>