MECHANICAL FACTORS IN FATAL SINGLE VEHICLE ACCIDENTS

THIS STUDY EXAMINED 409 FATAL SINGLE VEHICLE TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS FOR MECHANICAL FAILURE. OF THE VEHICLES EXAMINED, 29 PERCENT HAD ONE OR MORE MECHANICAL DEFECTS. ABOUT 6.4 PERCENT OF THE VEHICLES EXAMINED HAD A MECHANICAL DEFECT WHICH CAUSED THE ACCIDENT. CONSIDERING ONLY VEHICLES THAT HAD A DEFECT, APPROXIMATELY 63 PERCENT OF THE DEFECTS OBSERVED EITHER CAUSED OR CONTRIBUTED TO THE ACCIDENT IN WHICH THE VEHICLE WAS INVOLVED. THE MOST COMMONLY OBSERVED MECHANICAL DEFECT WAS IN THE BRAKING SYSTEM; THESE ACOUNTED FOR 35 PERCENT OF ALL DEFECTS FOUND. NEXT WERE STEERING SYSTEM DEFECTS WHICH WERE 26 PERCENT OF ALL DEFECTS. ALMOST ALL OF THE MECHANICAL DEFECTS WERE ATTRIBUTED TO WEAR AND LACK OF MAINTENANCE RATHER THAN DESIGN OR ASSEMBLY FLAWS. DRIVERS OF VEHICLES WITH MECHANICAL DEFECTS ARE MORE LIKELY TO BE UNDER 20 AND LESS LIKELY TO BE OVER 60 THAN DRIVERS OF NONDEFECTIVE VEHICLES. /AUTHOR/

• Supplemental Notes:
  • 69 Pp, App
• Corporate Authors:

  Calfornia Highway Patrol

  P.O. Box 942898
  Sacramento, CA  United States  94298-0001
• Publication Date: 1970-2

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Age; Braking; Defects; Drivers; Fatalities; Mechanics; Single vehicle crashes; Steering; Vehicles
• Subject Areas: Highways; Safety and Human Factors; Vehicles and Equipment;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00223290
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Sep 21 1970 12:00AM