HFEM Newsletter (May 2026) | Page 3
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HFEM Newsletter | May 2026 | Page 3
HFE Columnist
Beyond the Blame Game:
Why Road Safety is a Design Problem
When Road Design Becomes a Human Factors Issue
Road safety is often discussed in terms of driver behaviour: speeding, distraction, fatigue or poor judgement. While these factors are important, they do not tell the whole story. From a human factors and ergonomics perspective, road crashes should be understood as the result of the interaction between three main elements, namely: the driver, the vehicle and the road environment. This issue becomes especially relevant on challenging routes, where narrow lanes, sharp bends, limited shoulders and poor night visibility can increase the demand placed on drivers. In such conditions, driving is no longer a routine task. It becomes a high-demand activity requiring constant visual scanning, quick judgement and precise vehicle control.
The Driver: Mental Workload Behind the Wheel
Driving requires the brain to continuously process information such as road alignment, vehicle speed, distance from other vehicles, lane position, road signs and potential hazards. On narrow, winding or poorly lit roads, this processing demand increases significantly. This condition is known as mental workload, and it refers to the amount of cognitive effort required to perform a task. When the road environment is complex, drivers must make more decisions within a shorter period of time. They may need to estimate whether there is enough space to pass, anticipate vehicles coming from blind corners, and adjust speed before entering sharp bends. When mental workload becomes too high, drivers may react more slowly, misjudge distances or fail to detect hazards early. This does not necessarily mean the driver is careless; rather, it may mean the driving system is placing an excessive demand on human capability.
The Vehicle: More Than a Machine
The vehicle also plays an important role. A car is, in many ways, the driver’s workspace. Seat position, steering control, pedal reach, lighting, mirrors, brakes, tyres and suspension all influence how safely and comfortably a driver can operate the vehicle. Poor lighting, uncomfortable posture, weak suspension or poorly maintained tyres can increase both physical and mental strain. On difficult roads, even small limitations in the vehicle can become major contributors to risk. Therefore, vehicle safety should not only be seen in terms of mechanical function, but also in terms of visibility, comfort, stability and ease of control.
The Road Environment: Designing for Human Limits
The road environment is often underestimated. A safe road is not simply one that allows vehicles to pass. It should help drivers understand what is ahead, anticipate risks and make safe decisions. Poor road lighting, faded lane markings, unclear edge lines, limited signage and narrow shoulders can force drivers to ‘guess’ rather than confidently judge the situation. At night, this becomes more critical because visual information is reduced. Drivers may struggle to identify the road edge, estimate curvature or detect hazards early enough. From an ergonomics perspective, every unnecessary uncertainty increases the driver’s workload. A road that demands too much guessing is not a forgiving road.
Practical Interventions
Improving road safety requires action at several levels. Drivers should reduce speed before entering bends, avoid unnecessary distractions, ensure vehicle lights are working properly and stop when they feel physically or mentally tired. Vehicle owners should treat tyres, brakes, mirrors, lights and suspension as part of ergonomic safety, not just maintenance. Road authorities should consider human-centred interventions such as reflective road markings, better lighting, clearer warning signs before sharp bends, guardrails at high-risk locations, convex mirrors at blind corners and stronger visual guidance along road edges.
Conclusion
Road safety is not only about blaming drivers. It is about understanding how humans perform under real driving conditions. A good road should not merely connect one place to another. It should support human perception, judgement and decision-making. In difficult driving environments, tragedy may begin not with speed alone, but with a dark bend, a faded line, a narrow lane and a decision that must be made within seconds.
💡 Key Insights
Here are the key highlights from the article, broken down by its core human factors and ergonomics themes:
🧠 The Systems Approach & Mental Workload
The Three-Element Interaction: Road safety extends far beyond driver behaviour alone; crashes are the result of a complex interaction between the driver, the vehicle, and the road environment.
Cognitive Demand: Challenging roads (narrow lanes, sharp bends, poor lighting) spike a driver’s “mental workload”—the cognitive effort required to process information and make quick choices.
System Failure vs. Carelessness: When the road environment demands too much cognitive processing in too short a time, drivers naturally react slower and misjudge hazards. This is often a failure of the driving system placing excessive demands on human capability, rather than simple driver carelessness.
🚗 The Vehicle as an Ergonomic Workspace
The Driver’s Desk: A car should be treated as the driver’s primary workspace.
Physical & Mental Strain: Poor seat positioning, weak suspension, substandard tyres, and inadequate lighting do not just affect mechanical performance—they actively increase physical and mental strain.
Amplified Risks: On difficult routes, even minor ergonomic deficiencies in the vehicle become major contributors to overall accident risks.
🛣️ Infrastructure Built for Human Limits
Eliminating the ‘Guesswork’: Faded lane markings, poor lighting, and limited signage force drivers to hazardously ‘guess’ the road layout, which drastically increases workload.
The Danger of Night Driving: Reduced visual information at night makes it incredibly difficult for drivers to identify road edges or estimate curvature accurately.
The ‘Forgiving’ Road: A well-designed road must actively support human perception and decision-making rather than just serving as a physical connection between points.
🛠️ Shared Responsibility & Interventions
Driver & Owner Action: Drivers must proactively manage speed and fatigue, while vehicle owners need to view routine maintenance (brakes, tyres, mirrors) as vital ergonomic safety measures.
Human-Centred Infrastructure: Road authorities must deploy targeted, perception-assisting interventions, such as reflective road markings, clearer warning signs, guardrails, and convex mirrors at blind corners.
Dr. Nor Kamaliana Binti Khamis
Treasurer of HFEM
Senior Lecturer
Department of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering
Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment
Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
HUMAN FACTORS AND ERGONOMICS SOCIETY MALAYSIA
C-8-1, Block C, Jalan Atmosphere 6, Pusat Perniagaan The Atmosphere, Bandar Putra Permai, 43300 Seri Kembangan, Selangor
Phone: 03-8314 3360 E-mail: secretary@hfem.org