Assessing Safety Risk Management Performance in Chinese Subway Construction Projects: A Multistakeholder Perspective

Abstract

The rapid development of subway projects in China presents significant safety risks to those involved. Building on the previous empirical research that identified and classified the safety risks of these projects, the aim of this paper is to assess the safety risk management performance in Chinese subway construction projects from a multistakeholder perspective. Questionnaire surveys and semistructured interviews were conducted with three hundred and ninety-nine and eight construction professionals, respectively, who worked on subway construction projects in southeast China. The results indicate that the top five areas of safety risk management performance are related to construction plan development, management of high-risk construction works, hazard identification and communication, government-related factors, and client-related factors. In contrast, the bottom five areas of safety risk management performance are related to engineering consultant-related factors, the site’s natural environment and weather conditions, regular tests, machine calibration and maintenance, site construction schedule, and construction preparedness. The relationship between this safety risk management performance and the perceived importance of each risk factor is also reported, identifying priority areas for improvements on these projects. These findings contribute new conceptual insights to the paucity of research on the safety risk management performance of Chinese subway construction projects from a multistakeholder perspective. The results also provide new practical insights for policymakers and project managers to help them develop more effective and focused strategies to further improve the safety performance of these major projects.