The Effect of Vehicle Characteristics on Road Accidents

1st Edition - January 1, 1976
Author: I. S. Jones
Language: English
eBook ISBN:
9 7 8 - 1 - 4 8 3 1 - 5 7 4 7 - 4

The Effect of Vehicle Characteristics on Road Accidents investigates whether vehicle characteristics related to handling and stability contribute to road accidents. Using multiple… Read more

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The Effect of Vehicle Characteristics on Road Accidents investigates whether vehicle characteristics related to handling and stability contribute to road accidents. Using multiple regression analysis, this book addresses driver and vehicle effects separately in order to define both the magnitude of the handling/accident causation problem as well as the relative importance of the various performance measures. This monograph is comprised of six chapters and begins with detailed studies of accidents to determine the circumstances which lead to loss of control or overturning of a car on the road, and which accidents are likely to be influenced by the handling and stability characteristics of cars. Accident rates for these types of accident are then examined for the more popular models of car. Measures of vehicle handling and stability related to accident rates are also discussed. This text will be a useful resource for motorists and road engineers as well as transportation officials.

Preface

Chapter 1. The Use of Accident Analysis in Determining How Vehicle Characteristics May Contribute to Causing Accidents

1.1. Analysis of Accident Data Supplied by Britax (London) Ltd.

1.1.1. Data Source

1.1.2. Classification by Type of Accident

1.1.3. Factors Which Contribute to Loss of Control or Overturning

1.1.4. The Effect of Speed

1.1.5. The Effect of Occupancy on Frequency of Overturning

1.1.6. The Effect of Type of Car

1.1.7. Incidence of Tire Failure

1.1.8. Conclusions Drawn From the Britax Study

1.1.9. Comparison of the Results with Those of Previous Studies

1.2. A Study of Accidents Involving Fatal or Serious Injury on the M1 Motorway in 1971

1.2.1. Data Source

1.2.2. Accidents by Number of Vehicles Involved

1.2.3. The Importance of Loss of Control in Motorway Accidents

1.2.4. Incidence of Tire Failure

1.2.5. Conclusions

1.2.6. Comparison of the Results with Those of Previous Studies

1.3. Accidents Which Are Influenced by Vehicle Characteristics

1.3.1. Accidents Involving Loss of Control

1.3.2. Accidents Involving Overturning

Chapter 2. Estimating the Total Annual Mileage Traveled by Particular Models of Car

2.1. Previous Methods Used to Estimate Vehicle Mileage

2.1.1. Roadside Counts

2.1.2. Roadside Surveys

2.1.3. Household Surveys

2.1.4. Vehicle Owners' Survey

2.2. An Alternative Method for Estimating the Total Annual Mileage Traveled by Particular Models of Car

2.2.1. Estimating Numbers of Vehicles on the Road in Any Particular Year

2.2.2. Determining Mean Annual Mileage for Particular Models of Car

2.2.3. Total Mileage Traveled in 1969 and 1970 for Particular Models of Car

2.2.4. Estimating the Error in the Mileage Calculation

Chapter 3. Accident Rates Analyzed by Make and Model of Car

3.1. Data Source and Method of Analysis

3.2. Accident Rates by Make and Model of Car

3.3. Accident Rates by Age and Sex of Driver

3.3.1. The Effect of Driver Age on the Accident Rates of Different Models of Car

3.3.2. Mean Age of Driver by Model of Car Determined from the Normalized Accident Distributions

3.3.3. The Effect of Sex of Driver on Single-Vehicle Accident Rate

3.4. Alternative Criteria for Measuring Accident Rate

3.4.1. Mean Age of Driver by Model of Car for All Cars Registered

3.4.2. The Effect of Sex of Driver

3.4.3. Accuracy of the Accident Rates

3.5. Overturning in Single-Vehicle Accidents

Chapter 4. Measurement of Vehicle Characteristics Which May Influence Loss of Control or Overturning

4.1. Vehicle-Handling Characteristics

4.1.1. Vehicle Design Parameters

4.1.2. Vehicle Response Parameters

4.1.3. Braking Characteristics

4.2. Stability Characteristics

4.2.1. Overturning as the Result of Sliding without Hitting Any Obstruction

4.2.2. Overturning as the Result of Striking a Low Fixed Obstacle Such as a Kerb after Loss of Control

Chapter 5. Measures of Handling and Stability Related to Accident Rates

5.1. Vehicle Handling

5.1.1. Measures of Handling Related to Single-Vehicle Accident Rate

5.1.2. Measures of Handling Related to Single-Vehicle Accident Rate Corrected for Age and Sex of Driver Effects

5.1.3. Assessing the Relative Importance of Various Handling Parameters

5.2. Vehicle Stability

5.2.1. Measures of Stability Related to Proportion of Overturning in Single-Vehicle Accidents

5.2.2. Assessing the Relative Importance of the Stability Parameters

Chapter 6. Synopsis

6.1. The Use of Accident Analysis in Determining How Vehicle Characteristics May Contribute to Causing Accidents

6.2. Accident Rates by Model of Car

6.2.1. Total Mileage Traveled for Different Models of Car

6.2.2. Accident Involvement

6.3. Measures of Handling and Stability

6.4. Measures of Handling Related to Accident Rates

6.5. Measures of Stability Related to Proportion of Overturning

6.6. Concluding Remarks

6.6.1. Other Relevant Work

6.6.2. Future Work

Appendix I. Estimating Errors Incurred by Neglecting Monthly Variation in Mileage and Age-of-Car Effects

Appendix II. Tabulations of Accident Data Used in Chapters 3 and 5

Appendix III. Accident Rates Plotted against Design and Response Parameters: Slight Injury Accidents 1969 and 1970

References

Index