ROAD SIGNAGE DIAGNOSIS AND TRAFFIC DEMAND AS A BASIS FOR THE FUNCTIONAL CLASSIFICATION OF A RURAL ROAD IN SUCUMBÍOS, ECUADOR

Abstract

DOI: https://doi.org/10.46296/ig.v9i18.0364

Abstract

Deficient road signage and the lack of demand studies compromise safety and mobility in rural Ecuador, where more than 40 % of communities lack roads in adequate conditions. This study comprehensively assessed road signage and vehicular demand in the urban center of the Santa Cecilia parish, Lago Agrio canton, in order to diagnose the state of the infrastructure and propose the functional classification of the road along with a signage plan. A mixed-method, non-experimental, cross-sectional design was applied. The signage of El Oro, Loja, and Guayaquil streets was compared against the Ecuadorian Technical Standard RTE INEN 004, a seven-day classified vehicle count was carried out at the critical intersection, and a perception survey was applied to thirty users. The existing signs meet the regulatory dimensions but are scarce and lack coverage in the sections of greatest conflict. The count determined an Annual Average Daily Traffic of 1,584 vehicles, equivalent to 3,147 vehicles per day and to 5,181 in the twenty-year projection, with a predominance of light vehicles (60 %) and a relevant share of buses and trucks. This volume classifies the road in category C1 of the Ecuadorian Road Standard, whose 14.3 m cross section the current road does not meet. The need for a signage plan and cross-section homogenization is concluded. Extending the count to different seasons of the year is recommended.

Keywords: vehicle count; road safety; functional road classification; rural parish.