Explore our research data
NeuRA
Researching vehicle occupant injury prevention
Compass IoT
Using vehicle data to improve road safety
Driver behaviour
Explore data on driving behaviours that can impact safety on the road
Road safety brains trust: NeuRA
We’re now in our second three-year partnership with Neuroscience Research Australia (NeuRA), an independent,
not-for-profit research institute conducting world-leading brain and nervous system research.
NeuRA conducts road-safety-related research at our Transurban Road Safety Centre in Sydney. This research explores interactions between people and their vehicles—for example, how parents and carers install and fit child restraints;
how child restraints perform in serious crashes when installed incorrectly; and how ‘comfort accessories’ such as seat cushions and seatbelt comforters may affect crash outcomes.
NeuRA’s research aims to inform policy, regulation and standards to improve the safety of all road users. It has already identified potential improvements for child seats, which the Australian Standards Committee is in the process of reviewing. NeuRA research into new protective equipment for motorcyclists may also help improve rider safety in the future.
NeuRA’s crash sled: a vital tool
A crash sled, capable of reaching speeds up to 64 km/h is a vital testing tool for NeuRA researchers. The sled has, so far, been used in testing impacts involving aged drivers and passengers, rear seat occupants, motorcyclists, child seats and restraints and motorcycle design. Tests also provide important data on the severity of road crashes.
50% wrong: child restraint fitting
This research built on previous NeuRA research identifying that more than 50% of child restraints are used incorrectly, often involving multiple errors. NeuRA also found close to 40% of child restraints are used in ways that would impair crash performance.
Researchers at NeuRA tested incorrectly used child restraints (focusing on the five most common errors)
to assess how these errors impact child restraint performance during a crash.
Research overview
NeuRA’s test conditions included: each error, no error, convertible forward and rear-facing restraints, and a crash-test dummy representing a one-year-old child.
Child restraint errors tested included:
Loose seatbelt (securing the car seat in the vehicle)
Very loose harness (securing the child to the car seat)
Partial use of the harness (if a child has partially escaped from the restraint)
Loose top tether
Three minor errors combined (a twist in the securing belt, a harness twist and a loose harness)
Research findings
NeuRA’s tests found all five errors had negative consequences—that is, all five errors contributed to the crash-test dummy being ‘injured’.
Incorrect use of forward-facing restraints increased the risk of head and chest injury in a simulated crash more than incorrect use of rear-facing restraints.
A loose harness had the greatest impact on the performance of child restraints during a simulated crash. All forms of child restraint misuse proved extremely problematic.
Getting it right
In a survey of over 5,000 people across the cities in which we operate (Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, the Greater Washington Area and Montreal) we found that most people with a child car seat in their car fitted it themselves.
Based on NeuRA's and our own research, we’ve put together a webinar with key tips on fitting child seats safely.
Child restraint webinar
Learn more about the correct fitting of child restraints.
Transitioning from child car seat to adult seat belt
Front seat’s not a treat
The decision to move from a child car seat to an adult seat belt is big milestone and, if done prematurely, can present significant safety risks to a child. We commissioned a survey of over 3,000 people across Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane and found 53% of respondents with children living at home could correctly identify at least one of the criteria outlined in the Five Step Test, which is set out in the National Child Restraint Guidelines to help parents assess whether a child can safely travel using an adult seat belt. However, only 3% could identify all the criteria.
Despite alarmingly low levels of awareness, 72% of respondents with children living at home say they are compliant with the National Child Restraint Guidelines when travelling with a child. This still leaves 18% of respondents allowing children to travel using an adult seat belt before it is safe. Read the full Transurban Insights report here.
We are working with Kidsafe across Australia to educate our customers about how to assess whether a child is ready to travel using an adult seat belt.
Not cushioning the blow: comfort accessories
This research tested how ‘comfort accessories’ (seat, back and neck pillows) affect injury severity during a crash.
The research sought to understand and identify solutions for reducing older (over 65 years) drivers’ increased risk of serious injuries.
Research overview
People over the age of 65 are nine times more likely to be seriously injured during a car accident
Chest injuries are the primary cause of death for older drivers
Poorly positioned seatbelts increase the risk of chest injuries
About 25% of older drivers use a cushioning accessory
NeuRA researchers conducted more than 130 crash tests using various comfort accessories
Research findings
NeuRA tests found comfort accessories that change the geometry of a seatbelt or the posture of a driver do increase the chance of a chest injury in a crash.
What you can do
If you use a comfort accessory, consider adjusting your seat, steering column and seat-belt D-loop positioning instead.
These are safer options than using a cushion accessory.
Thrust of the matter: pelvic damage in motorcyclists
Motorcyclists are some of the most vulnerable people on our roads—only 5% of all registered vehicles in Australia are
motorcycles, but motorcyclists make up nearly a quarter of all traffic-related hospitalisations. One in five hospitalised motorcyclists
has a pelvic injury, and 85% of these injuries resulted from direct contact with the motorcycle’s fuel tank.
Research overview
NeuRA researchers designed and built a specialist crash-test sled to mimic different
rider sitting positions and travel speeds, before simulating a series of crashes.
Research findings
The crash tests found that the design of motorcycle fuel tanks and the sitting position
of the rider is likely leading to serious pelvic injuries in front-on crashes.
NeuRA found greater attention to the design of fuel tanks could improve the safety of motorcyclists,
particularly on motorcycles where riders are more likely to take an upright position while riding.
What’s next?
NeuRA’s findings were presented to safety specialists and motorcycle manufacturers to help influence safer fuel tank design.
Compass IoT road safety research
Compass IoT is a road intelligence company that uses connected vehicle data to improve road safety, infrastructure, and city planning.
NorthConnex wider network benefits data
Compass IoT’s technology enables us to capture accurate and real-time data about near-misses on our roads and the wider road network to get a clear picture on road safety performance. We used Compass IoT’s cutting-edge technology to measure overall road network safety performance following the opening of NorthConnex in Sydney.
NorthConnex was built to move traffic (including more than 6,000 trucks a day) off the severely congested Pennant Hills Road.
Anonymous in-car GPS data
Compass IoT used data sourced directly—and anonymously—from in-car GPS systems
to identify hard braking and erratic steering events (or ‘near-misses’) on Pennant Hills Road.
Driver behaviour
We track driver’s awareness and understanding towards a range of topics that can impact safety on the road through community surveys. We then use this information to educate our customers and communities so we can help to prevent crashes from occurring in the first place. Check out some of the topics we've explored so far.
Heavy vehicles
How people feel when driving around heavy vehicles, and their awareness of truck blind spots
Roadworks
Driving behaviour when driving through roadworks
Emergency services
Driving behaviour when pass emergency services
Read the full Transurban Insights report on road safety.
Heavy vehicles
Feelings of safety when driving around heavy vehicles is mixed, with a similar number of people feeling safe as there are who feel unsafe. This feeling may stem from a lack of awareness about how to drive safely around heavy vehicles.
Low awareness of truck blind spots
There is a low level of awareness of truck blind spots across Australia and North America, meaning that most people are likely unaware when they are driving in a truck blind spot. This can lead to incidents such as sideswipes or rear end crashes, which are some of the most common incidents we respond to on our roads (more information on crash types on our roads can be found here). We work with trucking associations to educate our light vehicle customers about truck blind spots and how to share the road with trucks safely.
Depending on their location (Australia or North America), respondents were shown one of two images and asked to nominate which sections of the image are truck blind spots based on left or right-hand drive. The correct sections are displayed in orange along with the % of respondents who identified it as a truck blind spot.
Depending on their location (Australia or North America), respondents were shown one of two images and asked to nominate which sections of the image are truck blind spots based on left or right-hand drive. The correct sections are displayed in orange along with the % of respondents who identified it as a truck blind spot.
Depending on their location (Australia or North America), respondents were shown one of two images and asked to nominate which sections of the image are truck blind spots based on left or right-hand drive. The correct sections are displayed in orange along with the % of respondents who identified it as a truck blind spot.
Roadworks
While most people (70%+) surveyed claim to always slow down to the posted speed limit when driving through roadworks, this high level of self-reported compliance is at odds with Transurban’s experience of driving behaviour around roadwork zones on our roads.
For example, in between December 2019 and January 2020 Transurban performed audits on our roadworks sites on CityLink / Tullamarine Freeway and found that average speeds through the length of the closure were 10-15km above the posted speed limit. We regularly run customer and community communications campaigns to increase awareness of the importance of slowing down to the posted speed limit through roadworks zones to ensure the safety of workers and motorists using our networks.
Emergency services
In Victoria and New South Wales drivers are required to slow down to 40km/h when passing stationary enforcement or emergency vehicles with flashing lights. In Queensland, drivers are required to ‘move over, slow down’ meaning to drivers must slow down to a safe speed limit of change lanes.
We found 12% of people surveyed do not always slow down to the posted speed limit when driving through roadworks (weighted average across Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane). This behaviour not only endangers the driver, but also the emergency services personnel, those they are responding to, and other motorists.
Transurban’s Traffic Control Room Operators support emergency services and first responders on our roads by lowering speed limits and closing lanes.