Mathematicians calculate the safest way home

A mobile app that guides pedestrians along the safest instead of quickest route to their destination is being developed by researchers at Cardiff University. Maths and computer science experts have devised a way of scoring the safety of any given area using sophisticated mathematical algorithms, which they believe could easily be implemented into a navigation mobile app to help reduce road traffic casualties. Each year about 1.24 million deaths worldwide result from road traffic crashes, making this the eighth leading cause of death globally. According to the UK Department for Transport, pedestrians accounted for 24% of all road deaths in Great Britain in 2015. At the moment, apps such as Google Maps do not account for pavements and will only give people the quickest route to their destination. These apps do not take into account the characteristics of pavements and roads and the dangers associated with them. In a new study, published in the journal Accident Analysis and Prevention, researchers have shown how a novel system for scoring the safety of an area can successfully predict the likely number of road casualties.