Urban Landuse and Traffic Calming Devices in Ibadan, Nigeria: Implications for Improved Road Safety

Abstract

With the example of Ibadan-Nigeria, this study was set to identify and characterise traffic calming devices

across different land uses. This was expected to reveal the different types of calming devices deployed for road

safety and areas where improvements in traffic safety should be focused. Observational research was conducted

in six traffic hubs in Ibadan using a two-level multi-sampling approach. In each of the selected traffic hubs,

investigations focused on the general condition, height and width of identified traffic calming devices. Ten

different types of traffic calming devices, classified into three broad groups, were identified. These were vertical

devices (speed hump/bump, roundabout, gateway), horizontal devices (raised median and raised median-island)

and signage (zebra crossing, speed limit, stop sign, transverse marking, one-way street). Apart from the

industrial traffic hub, where only one type of traffic calming device (speed hump) was identified, there were at

least two types of traffic calming devices in each of the other traffic hubs. It was established that many of these

devices, especially the speed humps, were installed without adequate attention to standard specifications. The

study also revealed that signage was predominant in locations where the proportion of literate road users was

high. The study concludes that as the distribution of available calming devices varies according to the character

and density of the built-up areas, so also does the level of road traffic safety.