BEING 1ST QUARTER LECTURE
DELIVERED AT WESTERN NAVAL COMMAND
Date:THURSDAY 21ST FEBRUARY, 2013.
Introduction
DEFINITION OF AUTO ROAD ACCIDENT
Accident is defined as an unintended and unforeseen event,
usually resulting in personal injury or property damage. In
law, the term is usually limited to events not involving
negligence, that is, the carelessness or misconduct of a
party involved, or to a loss caused by lightning, floods, or
other natural events (Act of God). In popular usage,
however, the term accident designates an unexpected event,
especially if it causes injury or damage without reference
to the negligence or fault of an individual. The basic causes
of such accidents are, in general, unsafe conditions of
machinery, equipment, or surroundings, and the unsafe
actions of persons that are caused by ignorance or neglect
of safety principles.
ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE OF ROAD ACCIDENT
Fatalities as a result of road accidents have
become more significant in recent years. For
example, in Nigeria, road accident fatalities have
risen over the years, while over the same time
period road accident fatalities in industrialised
countries have fallen.
There were some 500,000 road accident fatalities
per annum, worldwide, of which around 70%
occur in the developing world.
Annual fatalities per registered vehicle exceed 100
in some developing countries; compared with
rates less than 2 in most industrialised countries.
CAUSES OF ROAD ACCIDENTS:
Before accident can occur. Three (3) major
components comes to play, namely:
 Human (Driver)
 Vehicle (Mechanical)
 Road (Environment)
CAUSES OF ROAD ACCIDENTS:
DRIVER:
If a driver is sick, he can patronize his Doctor or
take a rest in order to allow the body to be ok.
CAUSES OF ROAD ACCIDENTS (cont’d)
VEHICLE
Significantly, a VEHICLE is made of many
mechanical components which can be substituted
when spoilt. More reputable mechanical
workshops for auto spare parts are springing up in
Lagos, even if new ones are expensive and costly.
Owode Onirin and Iyana Itire are there for
‘Tokunbo’ spare parts.
CAUSES OF ROAD ACCIDENTS (cont’d)
ROAD
ROAD is very stubborn, it has no mouth to talk, no head
to think like drivers. Yes, road claims, causes fatal, auto road
crashes at various locations across the country.
Then and thereafter, scientific although aware that roads
remain at is unlike other two (2) components i.e Driver and
Vehicle.
They also had it at the back of their mind that all Naval
officers are Proactive and controllable in different Seas;
especially they are very brilliant nautical miles calculators
(officers). Others are good in their various fields or area’s of
specialization.
Finally, they agreed, considered that VIO/POLICE should
stay permanently on the roads to prevent auto accident.
HIGHWAY CODE
ROAD
Then, simple road signs adopted and simple classification
employed based on the following configuration:
 Shape

Colour

Arrow/Direction

Lane Marking
HIGHWAY CODE

Shape

Colour

Arrow/Direction

Lane Marking
HIGHWAY CODE
Three (3) major classes of
adopted traffic road signs are:
 Regulatory/Mandatory
 Warning/Danger
Signs
Signs
 Informative/Directional Signs
HIGHWAY CODE
Reasons for Red Colour selection
 Easy to see (far & near)
 Resemble Devil (Bad spirit) (Not Functional)
 Attractive/Awakening/Reflective
Reasons for Green/Blue Colour
 Easy to see
 Friendly (vegetable colour)
 Reflecting greatly (Refractive index)
HIGHWAY CODE
REGULATORY SIGNS
HIGHWAY CODE
MANDATORY SIGNS
HIGHWAY CODE
DANGER SIGNS
HIGHWAY CODE
WARNING SIGNS
HIGHWAY CODE
INFORMATIVE SIGNS
HIGHWAY CODE
LANE MARKINGS
TRAFFIC LIGHTS
Red – To Stop
Bring your vehicle
to a complete halt
behind the stop line
or cross walk.
TRAFFIC ROAD MARKINGS (cont’d)
Broken Line (or Broken Line
to the left of a Continuous
line)
You must keep to the left of these
lines.You may cross them to
overtake or make a turn, but you
must only do so if it is safe.
TRAFFIC ROAD MARKINGS (cont’d)
Single Continuous Line
A dividing line is a road
marking formed by a
white/yellow line or two
parallel white/yellow lines
(broken or continuous)
designed to separate the
parts of a road to be used
by vehicles travelling in
opposite directions.
TRAFFIC ROAD MARKINGS (cont’d)
Parallel Lines
You must keep to the left and must not cross these
lines, unless you have to avoid an obstruction.
You are permitted to cross single or double
continuous lines in order to avoid an obstruction.
This does not include a slower moving vehicle or a
vehicle stopped in a line of traffic, but may include a
fallen tree, a crashed vehicle, or a car that has
broken down or is illegally parked.
Before crossing the line, you must have a clear view
of the road ahead and it must be safe. You must also
be very sure that you cross safely because the onus
is on you to take the risk of danger into account.
TRAFFIC ROAD MARKINGS (cont’d)
Dividing Lane v/s Lane
Lines
A “Lane” is the space between two lines (or
a line and the kerb) painted to divide the
road into two or more lines of traffic
travelling in the same direction. A “Laned”
road therefore has at least 2 lanes. A road
without marked lanes is an “Unlaned” road
regardless of its width. A “Multi-lane” Road is
a one-way road or a two-way road with 2 or
more marked lanes that are on the side of
the dividing strip or median strip (road
divider) where the driver is driving and for
the use of vehicles travelling in the same
direction.
TRAFFIC LIGHTS
Amber – Caution
You.
If your have entered
the intersection and
the light turns to amber,
move on very carefully.
If you see the amber
light before entering
the crossing, stop the
vehicle behind the stop
line or cross walk.
TRAFFIC LIGHTS
Amber – Caution
You.
If your have entered the
intersection and the
light turns to amber,
move on very carefully.
If you see the amber
light before entering the
crossing,
stop
the
vehicle behind the stop
line or cross walk.
TRAFFIC LIGHTS
Green – To Go.
Go through the crossing
carefully. You can turn in the
direction of the arrow by
giving indicator.
TRAFFIC LIGHTS
Pedestrian Signals
These signals help pedestrians cross intersections
safely. If you face a steady red human figure, do not
enter the road. Walk cautiously if you have a steady
green human figure.
YOUR KEYS
TO SAFE
DRIVING!
• Good Vision: Look with your eyes
but see with your mind.
• Obey Traffic Laws
• Proper care of your Car: Don’t
depend on bi-annually or yearly
inspection.
• Courtesy: Safety comes before
right-of-way.
• Proper signaling: Failure to signal
is dangerous and inconsiderate.
• Physical Fitness: Let someone
else take the wheel if you are not
physically and mentally alert