Traffic injury prevention
-
Traffic injury prevention · Jan 2018
Nationwide risk factors for hospital readmission for subsequent injury after motor vehicle crashes.
Some drivers involved in motor vehicle crashes across the United States may be identified as at risk of subsequent injury by a similar mechanism. The purpose of this study was to perform a national review of the risk factors for hospitalization for a new injury due to a subsequent motor vehicle crash. It was hypothesized that presenting to a different hospital after subsequent injury would result in worse patient outcomes when compared to presentation at the same hospital. ⋯ Nearly a third of patients suffering subsequent motor vehicle crash-related injury after an initial motor vehicle crash in the United States present to a different hospital. These patients are more likely to suffer more severe injuries and longer hospitalizations due to their subsequent injury. Future efforts to prevent these injuries must consider the impact of this fragmentation of care and the implications for quality and cost improvements.
-
Traffic injury prevention · Jan 2018
Medical investigation after a motorcoach strikes the rear of a tractor semitrailer parked on the highway; 13 fatal.
The objective of this study was to examine the medical conditions of 2 commercial drivers and the effects of physical barriers to occupant egress in a crash involving a tractor trailer and a motorcoach in order to assess and identify the factors that caused the crash and had a significant effect on occupant extrication. ⋯ The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) determined that the probable cause of the accident was the truck driver's falling asleep, most likely due to undiagnosed moderate-to-severe obstructive sleep apnea, and the motorcoach driver's failure to identify the stopped truck as a hazard requiring evasive action, most likely as the result of fatigue. Additional easy-to-use emergency exits would have decreased the time to extricate the occupants.
-
Traffic injury prevention · Jan 2018
Effect of traffic density on drivers' lane change and overtaking maneuvers in freeway situation-A driving simulator-based study.
The aim of this study is to examine the effect of traffic density on drivers' lane change and overtaking maneuvers. The differences between drivers' left and right lane changing/overtaking maneuvers were also investigated. ⋯ The results showed that as traffic density increases, drivers' lane changing and overtaking intentions are enhanced. Both initial overtaking distance and headway decrease with traffic density, which might influence road safety. In addition, drivers do not show a preference on the directions of lane change or overtaking according to frequency. However, drivers tend to be more decisive and reckless when overtaking on the right because of a smaller distance/headway before overtaking, higher instantaneous acceleration, and a more restricted field of view compared with overtaking on the left.
-
Traffic injury prevention · Jan 2018
Rollover injury in vehicles with high-strength-to-weight ratio (SWR) roofs, curtain and side airbags, and other safety improvements.
This study investigated trends in severe injury and ejection in rollover crashes involving lap-shoulder-belted drivers and right-front passengers. It was conducted because of changes in 2009 to consumer information programs and regulations related to rollover protection. The data are presented by model year (MY) of the vehicle in groups from 1995 to 2016. NASS-CDS cases with 2010-2016 MY vehicles were also evaluated to determine the crash circumstances and causes for severe injury of belted occupants in vehicles with a high strength-to-weight (SWR) roof, curtain, and side airbags and other safety improvements. ⋯ This study found a reduction in severe injury and ejection risk with modern vehicles. It indicates that vehicle safety has improved in response to IIHS and NHTSA efforts to expand the array of safety requirements and increase performance so that newer models are safer than earlier ones. There has been an incremental improvement in safety due to these advances.
-
Traffic injury prevention · Nov 2017
Are automatic systems the future of motorcycle safety? A novel methodology to prioritize potential safety solutions based on their projected effectiveness.
Motorcycle riders are involved in significantly more crashes per kilometer driven than passenger car drivers. Nonetheless, the development and implementation of motorcycle safety systems lags far behind that of passenger cars. This research addresses the identification of the most effective motorcycle safety solutions in the context of different countries. ⋯ Current results revealed that automatic systems have the greatest potential to improve motorcycle safety. Accumulating and encoding expertise in crash analysis from a range of disciplines into a scalable and reusable analytical tool, as proposed with the use of KBMS, has the potential to guide research and development of effective safety systems. As the expert assessment of the crash scenarios is decoupled from the regional crash database, the expert assessment may be reutilized, thereby allowing rapid reanalysis when new crash data become available. In addition, the KBMS methodology has potential application to injury forecasting, driver/rider training strategies, and redesign of existing road infrastructure.