Traffic Light Decision Making

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Traffic Light Decision Making

• During your time in the outdoors you will
  encounter dangers this is a certainty!
• It is essential that you develop the skill to
  recognize that the situation you are in is
  dangerous and could lead to injury or death.
• This presentation is designed to introduce you to
  hazards, accidents and how we can use the
  Traffic Light Decision Making Model to help us
  make safe decision when we are in the outdoors.

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Lets look at some situations you will encounter
at Glengarry Can you identify the hazard?
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Accident Potential

• Environmental Dangers

• Environmental dangers are always in the bush. It
  is only when we venture into situations that we
  dont recognise as being dangerous that the
  potential for an accident increases.

Human Dangers
Environmental Dangers
Lack of awareness Lack of skill Lack of
concentration Fatigue Breaking Rules
Slippery Trail Cliffs Lightning Rain Dark
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Accident Potential
Human Dangers
Environmental Dangers
Accident Potential
How could the conditions change to make this
crossing safe one day but dangerous the next
What can you do during a trip to be on the look
out for situations that may be dangerous?
When humans begin to interact with environmental
dangers and their awareness level is low, the
potential for an accident increases. We must be
constantly on the lookout for dangers.
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Environmental Human Hazard

• Let us look at the photo opposite. Can you
  brainstorm a list of the
• Environmental Hazards that could possibly lead to
  some kind of near miss or accident occurring? IE)
  What things are around this cliff that could lead
  to an accident?
• Human Hazards What choices made by this human,
  could lead to this accident occurring?

Environment Hazard Human Hazard




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Things that have led to deaths in the
outdoors!This could happen to anyone that is
unaware!
Unsafe Conditions that hikers have not recognised Unsafe Acts that Hikers have done! Judgement Errors Did not recognise the danger!
Swift Water washing people away Too close to cliff edge, or crossing rivers in flood New situations that you have not been in before.
Loose Rocks falling from above Not following safety rules Doing things to fit in and be cool in your group even though they are dangerous.
Falling off Cliffs Travelling too fast for the conditions Not understanding instructions
Being unprepared for severe weather changes Dehydration Distraction from dangers due to fatigue
Not having the correct clothing Poor nutrition which leaves you depleted of energy Being a teenage boy, thinking you are invincible.
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Potential for accidents increases as you
encounter more hazards and you make judgement
mistakes

• On a hike, if you encounter the following what do
  you think would happen to the probability of an
  accident occurring?
• You are tired, dehydrated, hungry.
• A storm hit and the track is wet, slippery, there
  is lightning about.
• You are in a hurry to get home for an important
  family dinner.
• You become shivering cold as you forgot your
  raincoat.
• The river you crossed yesterday has risen
  dramatically because of the storm run off.

You must recognise these hazards that the
possibility of an accident occurring IS
INCREASING. The Traffic Light System can help
make a safe decision!
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Traffic Light Risk Assessment Tool
A model for evaluating situations that appear
dangerous

• Red Light
• Real danger is present to proceed could result
  in death or serious injury

• Yellow Light
• Some danger is present but with care or the
  modification of risk you may be able to proceed

• Green Light
• Evaluation of risk determined it is safe to
  proceed

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How Do You Recognise That Danger Is Present?

• Gut Feeling Have any of you ever experienced a
  sensation that something just does not feel
  right? You sense danger?
• Vertigo near a cliff edge.
• Riding too fast down a hill on your bike or skate
  board.
• Going out in the surf on a day it was just too
  big.
• What kind of feelings, thoughts or sensations
  were sounding a warning in your thinking?
• Lets share some other examples from peoples
  lives. Have you had a gut feeling that something
  is not safe!

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What Should You Do If You Get This Feeling That
You Are In Danger, Or Things Are Not Safe?

• The first thing you and your group should do is
  STOP.
• By stopping you are remaining safe.
• This allows you time to THINK about the
  consequences of going further.
• If a teacher is nearby or you have a radio, use
  these resources for advice.
• If you are on your own or with other students the
  following steps should be followed!

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List Your Concerns In Your Field Journal

• Make a list of the things that you are
  identifying as being a concern to you or the
  groups safety.
• Next to each hazard or concern you now need to
  rate each one with regard to the consequence of
  something going wrong.
• This is done by giving each hazard a traffic
  light colour.
• A decision is then made regarding what to do.
• You can do one of the following three things.

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Using Traffic Light Colours To Make Safer
Decisions

• If there is any threat to any ones life or the
  risk of serious injury, you would give the hazard
  a RED light.
• This means that you AVOID the danger at all cost.
• If you can see a possibility of proceeding
  through a means of reducing the danger, you would
  give the hazard a Yellow light.
• This means you would do something to reduce the
  danger EG Use a rope to descend a steep slope,
  or link arms with group members to cross a fast
  flowing creek.
• If you have discussed the hazard and consider it
  safe to proceed, you would rate it a Green Light.

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Example Of How We Might Use Traffic Lights

• You are sitting on your bike at the top of the
  Glengarry drive.
• Your mate says to you, lets go as fast as we can
  without using brakes and see how fast we can go.
• Your gut feeling is sounding a warning. I am not
  sure about this.
• The first thing you should do is STOP.
• Then begin by mentally listing the hazards that
  exist in such a venture!
• Lets brainstorm what hazards there are and rate
  them with a Traffic Light Colour.

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Hazard Identification
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Rating Each Hazard
Hazard Traffic Light Rating
SPEED High impact crash Red
Loose surface Gravel Soft Edges Yellow
Experience Level Of Rider Novice Yellow
Protective clothing Helmet Limited not for downhill Yellow
Trees close to road high potential to crash Yellow
Any time you rate any hazard a RED you MUST NOT
continue as the potential to be killed or
severely injured is VERY HIGH.
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CAUTION This model can go wrong if!

• You Fail To Concentrate
• Never let your guard down. Be constantly scanning
  your surroundings for dangers. Keep checking on
  your gut feeling. Ask the What If question.
  What If I proceed, what could happen to me?
• You Smell The Barn
• What does a horse often do when you turn him
  around and head for home?
• He takes off throwing all caution to the wind.
• Accident statistics tell us that near the
  completion of a trip, groups begin to sense the
  trip is nearly over. They start to rush, let
  their concentration down and fail to observe and
  evaluate dangers.
• Do NOT Rush! Be careful and deliberate right
  until the end of the trip!

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CAUTION This model can go wrong if!

• The Risk Shifts
• Among teenage boys this phenomenon is something
  that could lead to a serious accident.
• Some inexperienced group members who are loud and
  dominant in personality, and have poor judgement
  about safety, can often influence groups to do
  something dangerous and silly. I reckon we can
  all climb that cliff, we wont fall.
• The quiet introverted person may sense a gut
  feeling that something is wrong but may not speak
  up. This just does not feel right, a fall from
  there and Im dead, but I dont want to look like
  a wimp in front these guys.

What should you do if a dominate group member is
trying to force an unsafe decision on you?
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CAUTION This model can go wrong if!

• You Have Poor Judgement
• You can only use this model successfully if you
  honestly speak up and share your ideas about your
  safety concerns.
• Glengarry staff will train you in this model
  initially teaching you how to use it to make safe
  decisions. We help build your judgement about
  what is safe and what is dangerous.
• If you do not recognise that something is
  dangerous, you may miss important clues that an
  accidents is about to occur.
• As the semester progresses you will be asked to
  demonstrate the use of the Traffic Light System
  for assessing dangers.

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Transferability To Other Areas In Your Life

• Traffic Light Decision Making can be used in all
  kinds of situations in life.
• Learn to use it now, then you have a tool to use
  for life!

Oh, I love you, lets have unsafe sex?
Should I take this Ice Tablet, nothing will
happen to me?
No that is a RED Light!
To decide whether to drink and drive?
Go on mate I have injected drugs before?
To decide whether to speed in your car?
Should I ride without my helmet?
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Identify Hazards in This Photo
Hazard Environment or Human Rating Red Yellow Green




What would you do to decrease the risk of losing
an eye?
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Identify Hazards in This Photo
Hazard Environment or Human Rating Red Yellow Green




What would you do to decrease the risk of getting
Gardia?
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Identify Hazards in This Photo
Hazard Environment or Human Rating Red Yellow Green




What would you do to ensure a safe campfire?
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Group Work Accident Scenario Analysis

• Lets now split up into groups of 4!
• Each group will be given a scenario outlining a
  set of circumstances that has lead to an accident
  in real life.
• Your job is to analyse these circumstances and
• Firstly make a list of the
• Environmental Hazards
• Human Hazards involved
• Then utilise the traffic light tool to rate each
  hazard you identified based on the rating scheme
  that was discussed earlier.

Click to obtain a Student recording Sheet for
this activity
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Any Question About The Traffic Light Model?

• Summary
• If in doubt STOP what you are doing.
• Use Traffic Light Model to guide your actions.
• Always err to the safest possible action.
• If unsure dont do it.
• Any Questions or Comments?