Acerca de las definiciones implícitas sobre el “delincuente”

Road accident data collection, in relation to RTA, could be described as a process that simply initiates the process of sourcing relevant information on a particular road accident through acceptable standard collection procedures established. The procedure is initiated from the application of ARF to the reportage of the accident, and then followed by the recording of the accident. The data collection procedures are relational data processing sequences, which connects the operations carried out in each unit involved. Figure 1 simply illustrates the four basic procedures followed in the processing of road accident data.

Basically, collection of road accident data should be thoroughly based on the definition of the data fields, because it is necessary to understand the purpose of the data, or what the data will be used for (Ehnes & Niu 2012). Generally, the relevant data elements [data fields] that are most paramount to the present state of the transportation safety in any country should be considered (Ehnes & Niu 2012). According to Ehnes & Niu (2012), “the more fields or entities are defined, the more related answers will be made available for evaluation; clearly, the administrative burden on reporters is increasing, making them less likely to deliver comprehensive and correct data” (Ehnes & Niu 2012). In addition, the data collection procedures were established according to the guidelines required to direct the units participating in the process through the activities involved. In South Africa, the procedures employed for the collection of the road accident data are administered by the RTMC as stated in section 1.1above. This particular department is recognised as one of the credible stakeholders authorised to manage the affairs of the road transportation systems in the country.

Nevertheless, Gorell (1997) stated that, “an efficient accident data collection and analysis system is a basic requirement for any country determined to tackle its road safety problem” (Gorell 1997). This statement demonstrates the initiative of gathering the relevant and accurate information, with the purpose of providing additional knowledge on the cause of RTA. The informative data fields provided in the data form [ARF] serve as guidelines to the reporting officer, through the process of obtaining relevant information for a particular type of accident. This depicts the significance of the ARF in the procedures designed for collection of road accident data. Concisely, the design and arrangement of the ARF have a vital role to play in the quality of the data collected. Additional information regarding the ARF is discussed in Appendix A.

Figure 1: A diagram depicting the four basic procedures for road accident data processing

After completing the required information in the ARF, the completed form will be submitted for proper evaluation process, to determine the quality level of the data collected. The process provides an understanding on the level of quality of the data collected. The information provided in the ARF is reassessed in order to control the underreporting issues, which are categorised as missing data, insufficient information, misrepresentation and misinterpretation of information. Thereafter, the information on the form is captured into the road accident data capturing system, and validated for analysis purpose through other significant process sections such as data pre-processing, data entry and data processing. These units manage the processes of data coding and entering of data into the road accident database, and simultaneously performs the analysis of the data appropriately, to ascertain the level of improvement in various areas of the transportation system. The subsequent sections contain the discussion covering the four basic procedures in road accident data processing.

2.2.2.1 Accident reporting system

This procedural system involves the driver who was reportedly involved in a traffic accident, and the police officer or the traffic officer, who inspected the scene of the traffic accidents and reported them to the nearest Municipal/Metro, Traffic Department [MMT] office, or South African Police Service [SAPS] station. Basically, a driver involved in an accident along a road is compelled by the National Road Traffic Act No. 93 of 1996, to report his/her involvement to any of the nearest authorised local authorities mentioned above within 24hrs of the incident, and delegates will be dispatched instantly to monitor the circumstances on the accident scene. Thereafter, depending on the severity level of accident [that is, only where case docket is

opened/registered], the traffic police is expected to measure the magnitude of the accident,

In the course of obtaining the necessary information as required, the police officer may determine the need for further investigations depending on the degree of severity of the accident. Primarily, a road accident involving death of a person or persons, is regularly handled by the police officer (Sluis 2001). Furthermore, the information collected necessitate a thorough review with the intention of detecting errors committed during the data collection process. The supervisory officer assigned to this task must be ready to draw attention of the reporting officer to errors detected. Actually, this process is performed with the intention of instilling accuracy and consistency as part of the strategic components that constitute a good quality data (Baguley 2001). If this could be achieved, minimal errors would be detected at the accident reporting section.

2.2.2.2 Accident recording system

In this particular unit, the information capturing unit at the local traffic department, or the MMT captures the information on the ARF, provided that the information is accurate and sufficient. At this level, the information is assessed, certified and captured before the daily quantity of the data collated could be transferred to the provincial department managed by the RTMC. However, operations like data validation, data pre-processing, data entry and data processing are concurrently carried out as the fundamental approaches of ascertaining the quality of information transformed into a complete data (Baguley 2001; Sluis 2001). The implementation of the data validation process stimulates the proper assessment of the information received from the MMT, and process it into data for analysis purpose.

Actually, the data capturing system designed for recording, updating and analysing of the road accident data offers more insight into the information received from the MMT. It provides a template arrangement of the information before it could be processed into data format. Moreover, some segments of the database, execute different tasks in the analysis of the road accident data. On one hand, this unit serves as the intermediary in the processing of road accident data collated from the accident location. Furthermore, the unit is recognised as the central link between the MMT and the national government. The unit executes tasks based on the feedback from both the local level and the national level.

2.2.2.3 Analysis of road accident data

This unit is placed under the supervision of the RTMC. The analysis of the road accident data intra-transfer from the ‘Accident Recording System Unit’ to the ‘Data Analysis Unit’ is performed within the RTMC bureau (O’ Day 1993; Baguley 2001; Njord et al. 2005). This unit provides better understandings on the state of the RTA in any parts of the country (O’ Day 1993). The analysis result may further reveal the most possible causes or contributory factors to different types of traffic accidents, and suggests appropriate steps that could be suitable to rectify or

reduce the causes. Technically, the trend displays through the graphical illustrations of the analysis performed can predict the focus areas that required immediate improvement.

2.2.2.4 Dissemination of road accident data

This unit performs all the tasks involving circulation or dissemination of the annual analysis report regarding all types of accident such as fatality, serious and slight injuries, and other important areas that comprise of statistical data (Baguley 2001). In short, the unit evaluates the analysis of road accident data and disseminate the report of the analysis to the public for further evaluation. Actually, this unit educates the national government, authorised divisions and the public on the efficiency level of the safety measures implemented, and the need to strengthen the existing systems with the necessary resources to improve the road safety plans (Baguley 2001). Besides, the outcome of the analysis will reveal if the traffic regulations enacted are observed regularly by the road users. Thereafter, the annual analysis report will be made available to other bodies for references, such as researchers, lecturers, insurer, and amendment to legislation.