Daily fluctuations in Honolulu motor vehicle accidents

Changes in daily motor vehicle accidents during 1990 are examined for the City and County of Honolulu. Adjusting for changed reporting criteria, daily accidents fluctuate according to an interaction between traffic volume, weekday travel patterns, holidays and weather. Fridays, particularly, and Saturdays have more daily accidents. Minor holidays generate more daily accidents, but major holidays generate fewer daily accidents, primarily because of lower traffic volume. Rainfall increases the risk of accidents substantially. The interaction between afternoons and rainfall is particularly dangerous. Unemployment also appears to reduce daily accidents.     

Characteristics of motor vehicle accidents resulting in spinal cord injury

The majority of cases of spinal cord injury (SCI) occur during car crashes. Yet, relatively little is known about the precise accident factors involved. The present study investigated 30 cases of SCI in automobile drivers that occurred in a series of 91 spinal cord injuries. A matched control group was also studied. SCI drivers were not different from controls in terms of mortality, number of rollover crashes, alcohol use, citations for contributing human factors, nighttime accidents, or unfavorable weather and road conditions. However, SCI drivers less frequently used restraints. Results are discussed in terms of preventive measures, specifically, those concerning restraint use, alcohol use, and driving behavior.     

Effects on accidents of periodic motor vehicle inspection in Norway

An extensive programme of periodic motor vehicle inspection was introduced in Norway after 1995, when the treaty between Norway and the European Union (EU) granting Norway (not a member of the EU) access to the EU inner market took effect (The EEA treaty). This paper evaluates the effects on accidents of periodic inspections of cars. Trucks and buses were not included in the study. Negative binomial regression models were fitted to data on accidents and inspections created by merging data files provided by a major insurance company and by the Public Roads Administration. Technical defects prior to inspection were associated with an increased accident rate. Inspections were found to strongly reduce the number of technical defects in cars. Despite this, no effect of inspections on accident rate were found. This finding is inconsistent with the fact that technical defects appear to increase the accident rate; one would expect the repair of such defects to reduce the accident rate. Potential explanations of the findings in terms of behavioural adaptation among car owners are discussed. It is suggested that car owners adapt driving behaviour to the technical condition of the car and that the effect attributed to technical defects before inspection may in part be the result of a tendency for owners who are less concerned about safety to neglect the technical condition of their cars. These car owners might have had a higher accident rate than other car owners irrespective of the technical condition of the car.     

Psychoactive substance use and the risk of motor vehicle accidents.

The driving performance is easily impaired as a consequence of the use of alcohol and/or licit and illicit drugs. However, the role of drugs other than alcohol in motor vehicle accidents has not been well established. The objective of this study was to estimate the association between psychoactive drug use and motor vehicle accidents requiring hospitalisation. A prospective observational case-control study was conducted in the Tilburg region of The Netherlands from May 2000 to August 2001. Cases were car or van drivers involved in road crashes needing hospitalisation. Demographic and trauma related data was collected from hospital and ambulance records. Urine and/or blood samples were collected on admission. Controls were drivers recruited at random while driving on public roads. Sampling was conducted by researchers, in close collaboration with the Tilburg police, covering different days of the week and times of the day. Respondents were interviewed and asked for a urine sample. If no urine sample could be collected, a blood sample was requested. All blood and urine samples were tested for alcohol and a number of licit and illicit drugs. The main outcome measures were odds ratios (OR) for injury crash associated with single or multiple use of several drugs by drivers. The risk for road trauma was increased for single use of benzodiazepines (adjusted OR 5.1 (95% Cl: 1.8-14.0)) and alcohol (blood alcohol concentrations of 0.50-0.79 g/l, adjusted OR 5.5 (95% Cl: 1.3-23.2) and >or=0.8 g/l, adjusted OR 15.5 (95% Cl: 7.1-33.9)). High relative risks were estimated for drivers using combinations of drugs (adjusted OR 6.1 (95% Cl: 2.6-14.1)) and those using a combination of drugs and alcohol (OR 112.2 (95% Cl: 14.1-892)). Increased risks, although not statistically significantly, were assessed for drivers using amphetamines, cocaine, or opiates. No increased risk for road trauma was found for drivers exposed to cannabis. The study concludes that drug use, especially alcohol, benzodiazepines and multiple drug use and drug-alcohol combinations, among vehicle drivers increases the risk for a road trauma accident requiring hospitalisation.     

Psychoactive substance use and the risk of motor vehicle accidents.

The driving performance is easily impaired as a consequence of the use of alcohol and/or licit and illicit drugs. However, the role of drugs other than alcohol in motor vehicle accidents has not been well established. The objective of this study was to estimate the association between psychoactive drug use and motor vehicle accidents requiring hospitalisation. A prospective observational case-control study was conducted in the Tilburg region of The Netherlands from May 2000 to August 2001. Cases were car or van drivers involved in road crashes needing hospitalisation. Demographic and trauma related data was collected from hospital and ambulance records. Urine and/or blood samples were collected on admission. Controls were drivers recruited at random while driving on public roads. Sampling was conducted by researchers, in close collaboration with the Tilburg police, covering different days of the week and times of the day. Respondents were interviewed and asked for a urine sample. If no urine sample could be collected, a blood sample was requested. All blood and urine samples were tested for alcohol and a number of licit and illicit drugs. The main outcome measures were odds ratios (OR) for injury crash associated with single or multiple use of several drugs by drivers. The risk for road trauma was increased for single use of benzodiazepines (adjusted OR 5.1 (95% Cl: 1.8-14.0)) and alcohol (blood alcohol concentrations of 0.50-0.79 g/l, adjusted OR 5.5 (95% Cl: 1.3-23.2) and >or=0.8 g/l, adjusted OR 15.5 (95% Cl: 7.1-33.9)). High relative risks were estimated for drivers using combinations of drugs (adjusted OR 6.1 (95% Cl: 2.6-14.1)) and those using a combination of drugs and alcohol (OR 112.2 (95% Cl: 14.1-892)). Increased risks, although not statistically significantly, were assessed for drivers using amphetamines, cocaine, or opiates. No increased risk for road trauma was found for drivers exposed to cannabis. The study concludes that drug use, especially alcohol, benzodiazepines and multiple drug use and drug-alcohol combinations, among vehicle drivers increases the risk for a road trauma accident requiring hospitalisation.     

The prevalence of drugs in motor vehicle accidents and traffic violations in Shanghai and neighboring cities

The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of psychoactive drug use among motor vehicle drivers in Shanghai and its neighboring cities. We selected 10,002 drivers involved in a traffic accident or violation between 2007 and 2008 in Shanghai, Suzhou and Wuxi. We checked for the presence of psychoactive drugs from blood samples using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS–MS). Of the 10,002 drivers, 10.5% tested positive for drugs (excluding alcohol). Cold medicines were the most frequently detected drugs including chlorpheniramine (4.78%), pseudoephedrine (2.15%) and paracetamol (1.32%). The use of multiple cold medicines was common. Illegal drugs such as methamphetamine (0.15%), ketamine (0.03%) and MDMA (0.01%) were also detected. The prevalence of psychoactive drugs among drivers involved in traffic accidents or violations in Shanghai and its neighboring cities was lower compared to previous reports in Europe. Furthermore, cannabis—which has been reported to be the most widely used psychoactive drug after alcohol—was not commonly encountered among Shanghai drivers.     

Drug use and fatal motor vehicle crashes: A case-control study

Drugged driving is a serious safety concern, but its role in motor vehicle crashes has not been adequately studied. Using a case-control design, the authors assessed the association between drug use and fatal crash risk. Cases (n = 737) were drivers who were involved in fatal motor vehicle crashes in the continental United States during specific time periods in 2007, and controls (n = 7719) were participants of the 2007 National Roadside Survey of Alcohol and Drug Use by Drivers. Overall, 31.9% of the cases and 13.7% of the controls tested positive for at least one non-alcohol drug. The estimated odds ratios of fatal crash involvement associated with specific drug categories were 1.83 [95% confidence interval (CI): 1.39, 2.39] for marijuana, 3.03 (95% CI: 2.00, 4.48) for narcotics, 3.57 (95% CI: 2.63, 4.76) for stimulants, and 4.83 (95% CI: 3.18, 7.21) for depressants. Drivers who tested positive for both alcohol and drugs were at substantially heightened risk relative to those using neither alcohol nor drugs (Odds Ratio = 23.24; 95% CI: 17.79, 30.28). These results indicate that drug use is associated with a significantly increased risk of fatal crash involvement, particularly when used in combination with alcohol.     

Predictors of injury among younger and older adults in fatal motor vehicle crashes

With 2003 Fatality Analysis Reporting System data, we examined relationships among predictors of motor vehicle injury/fatality outcomes for younger (35–54 years) and older (65 years and older) drivers. Using the Precede-Proceed Model of Health Promotion as an organizing framework, we classified variables into person, vehicle and environment domains and conducted a multinomial logistic regression.Significant risk factors for older driver injuries were impact crashes at 1–3 o’clock (OR = 1.65; CI: 1.05–2.59), 7–9 o’clock angles (OR = 2.59; CI = 1.45–4.63), and driving with one passenger (OR = 2.25; CI: 1.58–3.20). Previous other motor vehicle convictions were significantly associated with reduced risk of injury (OR = 0.55; CI = 0.34–0.90). The 7–9 o’clock angle (OR = 3.06; CI: 1.83–5.12), and driving in daylight hours were risk factors for fatality among older drivers.Many risk factors (e.g., female gender, non-seatbelt use, rollover crashes, and vehicle body type), and protective factors (e.g., number of lanes and non-airbag deployment) were relevant for younger and older drivers. Findings showed relevant factors for drivers from both age groups, with some pointing to older adults, and set the stage for further research to develop injury and fatality prevention programs.     

Traffic accidents in Kuwait: an economic dimension

The cost per traffic fatality in Kuwait is assessed, comparing three different studies, and is found to be in excess of US $500,000. The three studies employ somewhat different methods.     

Mechanical failures as a contributing cause to motor vehicle accidents South Africa

Over the past decades motor vehicles became the primary mode of transportation in developing countries. At the same time an improvement in automotive engineering and manufacturing as well as the phenomena of urbanisation have resulted in more vehicles spending more time on the road at higher speeds. Invariably this leads to driving scenarios where safety critical manoeuvres have to be performed that rely on the mechanical condition of the vehicles. In developing countries, where economic realities force the population to make use of older and less reliable vehicles, the risk of accidents caused by some sort of mechanical failure increases. The casualty rate (events causing death and/or serious injuries) for road traffic accidents in South Africa is amongst the highest in the world. This trend has persisted with little variation over the years, despite the efforts of local road safety organisations and research institutes to decrease them. The main goal of this study was to establish the contribution of mechanical failures to motor vehicle accidents, and furthermore, to compare it with international trends. Data obtained from accident response units (ARU) indicate that tyres and brakes were the main contributors to mechanical failures resulting in accidents in the Pretoria region (Gauteng Province). However, the reported percentage of approximately 3% is comparable to similar statistics from developed countries. Detailed information on the condition of road-going vehicles was then collected in this area. The roadside survey (potential mechanical defect tests (PMDT)) indicated that 40% of the vehicles surveyed on the suburban road and 29% of the vehicles surveyed on the highway had mechanical defects that contravened current road and traffic regulations in South Africa and may, therefore, be at risk of causing an accident due to a mechanical failure. In the Minibus (taxi) survey, large irregularities in tyre inflation pressure were identified as a cause of concern. The main conclusion from this work is that tyres and brakes are the two most dominant components that contribute to the mechanical defects causing accidents, with overloading an additional factor to consider. It is important to acknowledge that these three factors can easily be monitored during simple roadside inspections.     

Predicting seat belt use in fatal motor vehicle crashes from observation surveys of belt use

There is a large difference between the rates of observed seat belt use by the general public and belt use by motor vehicle occupants who are fatally injured in crashes. Seat belt use rates of fatally injured occupants, as reported in the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), are much lower than the use rates found in observation surveys conducted by the states. A series of mathematical models describing the empirical relationship between FARS and observed rates were explored. The initial model was a 'straw man' and used two simplifying assumptions: (a) belt users and nonusers are equally likely to be involved in 'potentially fatal collisions', and (b) belts are 45% effective in preventing deaths. The model was examined by comparing each state's FARS use rate with the predicted rate. The model did not fit the state data points even when possible biases in the data were controlled. We next examined the assumptions in the model. Changing the seat belt effectiveness parameter provided a reasonable fit, but required an assumption that seat belts are 67% effective in preventing fatalities. The inclusion of a risk coefficient for non-belted occupants also provided a reasonable fit between the model and data. A variable risk model produced the best fit with the data. The major finding was that a model consistent with the data can be obtained by incorporating the assumption that nonusers of seat belts have a higher risk of involvement in potentially fatal collisions than do seat belt users. It was concluded that unbelted occupants are over-represented in fatal collisions for two reasons: (a) because of a greater chance of involvement in potentially fatal collisions in the first place, and (b) because they are not afforded the protection of seat belts when a collision does occur.     

Risk and protection factors in fatal accidents

This paper aims at addressing the interest and appropriateness of performing accident severity analyses that are limited to fatal accident data. Two methodological issues are specifically discussed, namely the accident-size factors (the number of vehicles in the accident and their level of occupancy) and the comparability of the baseline risk. It is argued that - although these two issues are generally at play in accident severity analyses - their effects on, e.g., the estimation of survival probability, are exacerbated if the analysis is limited to fatal accident data. As a solution, it is recommended to control for these effects by (1) including accident-size indicators in the model, (2) focusing on different sub-groups of road-users while specifying the type of opponent in the model, so as to ensure that comparable baseline risks are worked with. These recommendations are applied in order to investigate risk and protection factors of car occupants involved in fatal accidents using data from a recently set up European Fatal Accident Investigation database (Reed and Morris, 2009). The results confirm that the estimated survival probability is affected by accident-size factors and by type of opponent. The car occupants’ survival chances are negatively associated with their own age and that of their vehicle. The survival chances are also lower when seatbelt is not used. Front damage, as compared to other damaged car areas, appears to be associated with increased survival probability, but mostly in the case in which the accident opponent was another car. The interest of further investigating accident-size factors and opponent effects in fatal accidents is discussed.     

Mapping patterns of pedestrian fatal accidents in Israel

This study intends to provide insight into pedestrian accidents by uncovering their patterns in order to design preventive measures and to allocate resources for identified problems. Kohonen neural networks are applied to a database of pedestrian fatal accidents occurred during the four-year period between 2003 and 2006. Results show the existence of five pedestrian accident patterns: (i) elderly pedestrians crossing on crosswalks mostly far from intersections in metropolitan areas; (ii) pedestrians crossing suddenly or from hidden places and colliding with two-wheel vehicles on urban road sections; (iii) male pedestrians crossing at night and being hit by four-wheel vehicles on rural road sections; (iv) young male pedestrians crossing at night wide road sections in both urban and rural areas; (v) children and teenagers crossing road sections in small rural communities. From the perspective of preventive measures, results suggest the necessity of designing education and information campaigns for road users as well as allocating resources for infrastructural interventions and law enforcement in order to address the identified major problems.     

The driver as cause or victim in vehicle skidding accidents

The implication, if not the evidence, that drivers are the principal causative factor in vehicle skidding accidents is widespread. This conclusion is discussed and refuted. There are several potential sources of information or knowledge which might allow the driver to prevent skidding, to avoid initiating a serious skid, to detect an incipient skid, and to control a skidding vehicle that have not been explored or developed. With the current lack of information supplied them, drivers are more often the victims of chance conditions rather than the causes of preventable losses of control. More comprehensive models of driver potential as a controller are called for, and a research program is outlined for developing the types and quality of information which potentially are available for better system performance.     

Differences between single- and multiple-automobile fatal accidents

This communication discusses probable similarities and differences between single-vehicle and multiple-vehicle accidents. The investigation is based upon all fatal automobile accidents in the whole of Sweden [1975]. It is shown that single-vehicle accidents are more common on weekends and late in the day. Collisions between vehicles occurred often during bad weather conditions. Single-vehicle accidents happened more often on roads with lower speed limits than did collisions between vehicles. In single-vehicle accidents the drivers were markedly younger, more often drunken, and showed severe signs of social deviance. These features of the drivers in single-vehicle accidents significantly differed from drivers involved in collisions between vehicles even when results were corrected with regard to the fact that there are always two drivers involved in collisions between vehicles, and thus 50% of the drivers in these accidents supposedly represent what could be called average drivers. The use of seat belts and possession of driver's licenses were much lower in single-vehicle accidents. The question of psychopathic states in drivers involved in single-vehicle accidents is raised.     

Matching fatal accident reporting system cases with National Center for Health Statistics motor vehicle deaths

Motor vehicle traffic fatalities in the United States are described by two major data sources, the Fatal Accident Reporting System (FARS) and the National Center for Health Statistics Multiple Cause of Death data (NCHS). Certain data, such as the age and sex of the fatality, are reported by both sources. However, each source contains data absent from the other. For example, only the FARS describes the precise circumstances of injury, and only the NCHS identifies the anatomic injuries listed on the death certificate. Thus, it would be useful to have a single file that offers for each case all of the data provided in each of the separate files. Creation of such a file is impeded by the fact that neither file contains personal identifiers for the cases listed. The present paper describes a method of matching cases from the two files based on simultaneous agreement of several variables common to both files (age, sex, date of death, role in the crash, and state in which the injury occurred). Using this method, 85% of the FARS cases can be uniquely matched with a case in the NCHS data.     

Bicyclist injury severities in bicycle-motor vehicle accidents

This research explores the factors contributing to the injury severity of bicyclists in bicycle-motor vehicle accidents using a multinomial logit model. The model predicts the probability of four injury severity outcomes: fatal, incapacitating, non-incapacitating, and possible or no injury. The analysis is based on police-reported accident data between 1997 and 2002 from North Carolina, USA. The results show several factors which more than double the probability of a bicyclist suffering a fatal injury in an accident, all other things being kept constant. Notably, inclement weather, darkness with no streetlights, a.m. peak (06:00 a.m. to 09:59 a.m.), head-on collision, speeding-involved, vehicle speeds above 48.3 km/h (30 mph), truck involved, intoxicated driver, bicyclist age 55 or over, and intoxicated bicyclist. The largest effect is caused when estimated vehicle speed prior to impact is greater than 80.5 km/h (50 mph), where the probability of fatal injury increases more than 16-fold. Speed also shows a threshold effect at 32.2 km/h (20 mph), which supports the commonly used 30km/h speed limit in residential neighborhoods. The results also imply that bicyclist fault is more closely correlated with greater bicyclist injury severity than driver fault.     

Graduated driver license nighttime compliance in U.S. teen drivers involved in fatal motor vehicle crashes

Background

Examination of teen driver compliance with graduated driver licensing (GDL) laws could be instrumental in identifying factors associated with persistently high motor vehicle mortality rates.

Methods

Fatality analysis reporting system (FARS) data from the years 2006 to 2009 were used in this nation-wide cross-sectional study of drivers covered by a state nighttime GDL law (n = 3492). A new definition of weekend, based on the school night in relation to the teenage social landscape, redefined Friday night as a weekend night and Sunday night as a weekday/school night and compared it to previous weekend definitions. Multiple logistic regression was used to examine independent effects of demographic, behavioral, environmental, contextual, and other factors on compliance with nighttime GDL laws. All analyses were performed in Stata version 11.

Results

Given coverage under nighttime GDL laws, drivers aged 15–17 years were non-compliant in 14.9% of the fatal MVCs in which they were involved, and nearly one-fifth (18.8%) of all fatalities aged 15–17 years were associated with non-compliance. Mortality risk was 10% higher using a revised social (school night) versus traditional (Sat–Sun) weekend definitions. In multivariable analysis, drivers non-compliant with nighttime GDL laws were more likely to be drinking (OR = 4.97, 3.85–6.40), unbelted (OR = 1.58, 1.25–1.99), driving on the weekend (OR = 1.82, 1.47–2.24), and killed (OR = 1.31, 1.04–1.65).

Conclusion

GDL non-compliance contributes to teen motor vehicle mortality. Legislative and enforcement efforts targeting non-school night driving, seatbelt nonuse and alcohol have potential to further reduce teen driving mortality.