EFFECTIVENESS OF PRIMARY AND SECONDARY ENFORCED SEAT BELT LAWS

The objective of this study was to determine the relative efficacy of primary and secondary enforced motor vehicle occupant restraint laws on the outcomes of restraint use, crash-related mortality, and crash-related injuries. Eight databases were searched for relevant studies. The authors identified 48 studies for the review. When places or time periods with primary enforcement laws were compared to those without such laws, the relative prevalence of seat belt use ranged from 1.5 to 4.5; the prevalence differences ranged from 10 to 50 per 100 observed drivers. Secondary laws had smaller effects. Two studies evaluated a change in law from secondary to primary enforcement; this was associated with an increase in belt use 6 months later of 5.3 per 100 observed drivers in Louisiana and 18 per 100 drivers in California. Primary enforcement laws were associated with a relative risk of death in motor vehicle crashes of .54 to .97. The reduction in mortality associated with secondary enforcement laws was much more modest, with relative risks estimates of .81 to 1.025. Primary enforcement laws were associated with a relative risk of severe injuries of .20 to .89; the association of secondary enforcement laws with severe injuries was smaller. The authors' review of existing studies suggests that primary enforcement laws are likely to be more effective than secondary laws. However, few studies are of good quality, and quantitative estimates of the relative effect of primary compared with secondary laws are limited.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/07493797
• Corporate Authors:

  Oxford University Press

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• Authors:
  • Rivara, F P
  • Thompson, D C
  • Cummings, P
• Publication Date: 1999-1

Language

• English

Media Info

• Features: References; Tables;
• Pagination: p. 30-39
• Serial:
  • American Journal of Preventive Medicine
  • Volume: 16
  • Issue Number: 1S
  • Publisher: Elsevier
  • ISSN: 0749-3797
  • Serial URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/07493797

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Databases; Fatalities; Injuries; Laws; Motor vehicles; Research; Restraint systems; Risk assessment; Seat belts; Studies; Traffic crashes; Traffic safety; Vehicle occupants
• Uncontrolled Terms: Effectiveness; Primary laws; Secondary laws; Use (Seat belts)
• Subject Areas: Highways; Law; Passenger Transportation; Research; Safety and Human Factors; I83: Accidents and the Human Factor;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00764866
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: Supplement
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Jun 16 1999 12:00AM