Report on accident involving a lorry and a pedestrian in Karolinerveien at Byåsen in Trondheim on 17 September 2021
Road traffic report 2022/07
The accident at Byåsen in Trondheim on 17 September 2021 happened when a distribution lorry from the dairy group TINE SA was delivering goods to a municipal kindergarten. The driver, who was alone in the lorry, had to reverse the lorry approx. 95 metres into a narrow side road in a residential area because it was impossible to turn the lorry around outside the kindergarten. The reversing lorry hit an elderly pedestrian approx. 36 metres into the side road. The pedestrian died from the injuries sustained in the accident. The investigation has emphasised the reversing situation and support systems in the vehicle, TINE SA's accident prevention work, and what the municipality has done to facilitate safe delivery of goods.
The vehicle was equipped with optical aids including cameras and mirror cameras, but the driver still did not see the pedestrian in the danger zone behind the vehicle. The NSIA is of the opinion that an acoustic warning that there is something in the vehicle's danger zone would have given the driver a better chance to spot the pedestrian. The NSIA therefore supports the European Commission's work on the Type Approval Directive with a view to introducing a warning system with an acoustic warning signal in the driver’s cab.
The investigation has not found that the functionality of the mirror cameras had any bearing on the sequence of events. There will always be blind spots around a reversing lorry, as the driver has to continually move his eyes and attention between different monitors, windows and mirrors. However, it is a weakness that the driver was not aware of the different functions of the mirror cameras and that he had not received any training on this point.
TINE's dairy at Tunga had scheduled deliveries to the kindergarten to take place at a time when the children would be indoors. However, deliveries to the kindergarten were not deemed to be particularly challenging, and it had therefore not been added to the list of school deliveries that require a driver's mate in the car. Following the accident, TINE SA has initiated a project to map and conduct risk assessments for all delivery locations.
The accident took place on a road that was partly municipal and partly a private road owned by the housing cooperative. The investigation has shown that the roadside terrain with vegetation, skips and cars parked along the narrow road may have impaired visibility when the vehicle was reversing. Following the accident, Trondheim municipality has implemented local measures in cooperation with the housing cooperative. The municipality has also set in motion planning work to improve safety in the area.
The investigation has also shown that Trondheim municipality had not conducted a traffic safety risk assessment for the kindergarten and the surrounding area. The contract between the municipality and the distributor did not make much mention of traffic safety, and there was no requirement for the distributor to inspect or carry out a risk assessment of the delivery location.
The NSIA submits two safety recommendations to TINE SA and Trondheim municipality, respectively, as a result of this investigation.
This report is in Norwegian only.
Published 06.09.2022
Safety recommendation
Safety recommendation ROAD No 2022/18T
The accident at Byåsen in Trondheim on 17 September 2021 occurred when a distribution lorry was delivering goods to a municipal kindergarten. Although the functionality of the mirror cameras did not have any bearing on the sequence of events, the investigation has shown that the driver was not aware of their different functions. Nor had the driver received any training in how to use these functions when he took over the lorry. The distributor had requirements in place for first-time training for new vehicles, but no requirements for how training was to take place when a new driver took over a vehicle.
The Norwegian Safety Investigation Authority recommends that TINE SA prepare training procedures to ensure that drivers are sufficiently familiar with their vehicle’s functions and safety equipment.
Safety recommendation ROAD No 2022/19T
The accident at Byåsen in Trondheim on 17 September 2021 occurred when a distribution lorry was delivering goods to a municipal kindergarten. It was not possible to turn the lorry around in the side road. The investigation has shown that the roadside terrain, with vegetation, containers and parked cars, may have impaired visibility when the vehicle was reversing. No risk assessment with a focus on traffic safety had been carried out for the kindergarten and its surrounding area. The contract between the municipality and the distributor did not make much mention of traffic safety and set no requirement for the distributor to inspect or carry out a risk assessment of the delivery location.
The Norwegian Safety Investigation Authority recommends that Trondheim municipality draw up guidelines for emphasising traffic safety in tenders and contracts with suppliers, as well as establish procedures for systematic traffic safety assessments of municipal entities and deliveries.
Facts
| Location | Karolinerveien, Byåsen in Trondheim, Trøndelag county |
| Occurrence date | 17.09.2021 |
| Accident type | Collision |
| Road class | Local road |
| County | Trøndelag |
| Police Disctrict | Trøndelag |
| Vehicle type | Pedestrian, Lorry |
| Type of Transportation | Freight transport |
| Road region | Trøndelag |
| Accident category | Ulykke m/ kjøretøy over 7500 kg |