Geograpic information systems in determining road traffic crash analysis in Ibadan, Nigeria

Abstract

Background: Road traffic accidents are frequent in this environment, hence the need to determine the place of geographic information systems in the documentation of road traffic accidents. Aim & Objectives: To investigate and document the variations in crash frequencies by types and across different road types in Ibadan, Nigeria. Materials & Methods: Road traffic accident data between January and June 2011 were obtained from the University College Hospital Emergency Department's trauma registry. All the traffic accidents were categorized into motor vehicular, motorbike and pedestrian crashes. Georeferencing of accident locations mentioned by patients was done using a combination of Google Earth and ArcGIS software. Nearest neighbor statistic, Moran's-I, Getis-Ord statistics, Student T-test, and ANOVA were used in investigating the spatial dynamics in crashes. Results: Out of 600 locations recorded, 492 (82.0%) locations were correctly georeferenced. Crashes were clustered in space with motorbike crashes showing greatest clustering. There was significant difference in crashes between dual and non-dual carriage roads (P = 0.0001), but none between the inner city and the periphery (p = 0.115). However, significant variations also exist among the three categories analyzed (p = 0.004) and across the eleven Local Government Areas (P = 0.017). Conclusion: This study showed that the use of Geographic Information System can help in understanding variations in road traffic accident occurrence, while at the same time identifying locations and neighborhoods with unusually higher accidents frequency.