Citation

Clark J. J. Australas. Coll. Road Saf. 2007; 18(2): 29-33.

Affiliation

School of Classics, History and Religion, University of New England, Armidale, NSW, Australia

Copyright

(Copyright © 2007, Australasian College of Road Safety)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

When road deaths occur it is common for those who mourn to erect roadside memorials. This development challenges the traditional view of the verge as merely a peripheral space adjacent to the transit way. In response, some local government authorities have formally considered their position on roadside memorials and developed policies to regulate the erection, maintenance and removal of roadside memorials. This paper examines local council polices to detect trends, concerns and perceptions about the presence of roadside memorials in local government areas.

Legal, safety and maintenance issues vex councils deciding to implement policies. Councils are concerned that roadside memorials will form a safety hazard either because they are too close to the carriageway or built of materials that will cause injury on impact or because visitors attending to the memorial may themselves be hit by passing traffic. Memorials may become a distraction for drivers. Poorly maintained memorials could also become a safety and drainage hazard. Personal items could blow away and become roadside litter. Memorials have become hazards for road maintenance crews who either have to work around the memorials or sometimes damage them in the course of their operations. One council undertook an annual review of memorial sites in order to ensure they had not become hazards. All of these reasons present councils with public liability concerns. It may seem easier to ban roadside memorials altogether and yet the one council that did that rescinded its policy. The next best thing is to regulate the substance, duration and of course location of memorials in order to balance sensitivity with concerns for public liability.

There is currently no substantial study which proves one way or another that roadside memorials have any clearly discernible link to road safety. It is impossible to know at this point whether or not roadside memorials serve any other purpose than a comfort to the grieving.


Keywords: Driver distraction;