ACCIDENT AND VIOLATION EXPERIENCE AND DRIVING TEST SCORE

ACCIDENT AND VIOLATION RATES WERE COMPARED ACCORDING TO DRIVING PERFORMANCE TEST SCORES FOR 1,243 DRIVERS WITH CHRONIC MEDICAL CONDITIONS KNOWN TO THE CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF MOTOR VEHICLES AND 401 DRIVERS NOT KNOWN TO HAVE ANY MEDICAL CONDITIONS. DRIVERS IN THE COMPARATIVE GROUP WERE SAMPLED BY MEANS OF A QUESTIONNAIRE AS THEY RENEWED A DRIVER'S LICENSE. DRIVERS AGE 60 OR OLDER AVERAGED LOWER TEST SCORES THAN DID YOUNGER DRIVERS. AGE-ADJUSTED MEAN INDIVIDUAL ACCIDENT RATES PER MILLION MILES WERE 27.3 FOR DRIVERS WITH SCORES WITH 70-79%, 20.9 FOR THOSE WITH 80-89%, AND 20.6 FOR PERSONS WITH SCORES OF 90% OR HIGHER. DIFFERENCES IN VIOLATION RATES BETWEEN THE THREE SCORING GROUPS WERE NOT SIGNIFICANT. ONLY MINOR DIFFERENCES IN TYPES OF ACCIDENTS AND VIOLATIONS WERE OBSERVED FOR EACH SCORING GROUP. DRIVERS WITH PSYCHOSOCIAL DISORDERS SHOWED ALMOST NO CONSISTENCY BETWEEN TWO SUCCESSIVE TEST SCORES, WHEREAS A MODERATE CORRELATION BETWEEN SUCCESSIVE SCORES WAS NOTED FOR DRIVERS WITH ORGANIC MEDICAL CONDITIONS OR NO KNOWN CONDITION. CITATIONS FOR EXCESSIVE SPEED SHOWED A SLIGHT, BUT NOT SIGNIFICANT, INCREASE WITH INCREASING DRIVING TEST SCORE, WHEREAS CITATIONS FOR FAILURE TO OBSERVE A STOP SIGNAL OR RIGHT-OF-WAY DECREASED SOMEWHAT, ALTHOUGH NOT SIGNIFICANTLY, AS THE DRIVING TEST SCORE INCREASED. THE DRIVING TEST SCORE IS A FUNCTION OF SEVERAL VARIABLES INCLUDING: (1) PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE DRIVER, SUCH AS BASIC DRIVING ABILITY AND ATTITUDE TOWARD RISK-TAKING, (2) TRAINING AND MARKING ATTITUDE OF THE DRIVING LICENSE EXAMINER, (3) TYPES OF DRIVING TASKS REQUIRED BY THE ROADWAY AND TRAFFIC PATTERNS IN THE IMMEDIATE AREA OF THE DEPARTMENT OF MOTOR VEHICLE OFFICE, (4) RELATIVE SCORING VALUES ASSIGNED TO VARIOUS ASPECTS OF THE DRIVING TEST, AND (5) CONDITION AND HANDLING CHARACTERISTICS OF THE CAR.

• Record URL:
  http://onlinepubs.trb.org/Onlinepubs/hrr/1968/225/225-001.pdf
• Record URL:
  http://
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Paper sponsored by Committee on Highway Safety. Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
• Authors:
  • Waller, Julian A
  • Goo, James T
• Publication Date: 1968

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Features: References; Tables;
• Pagination: pp 1-8
• Monograph Title: Traffic safety and accident research
• Serial:
  • Highway Research Record
  • Issue Number: 225
  • Publisher: Highway Research Board

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Age; Crash analysis; Crash rates; Crash types; Driver performance; Driver training; Drivers; Medical examinations and tests; Personnel performance; Persons with disabilities; Psychological aspects; Questionnaires; Reaction time; Speed limits; Testing; Traffic crashes
• Uncontrolled Terms: Driver reaction; Violations
• Old TRIS Terms: Driver investigation
• Subject Areas: Highways; Safety and Human Factors; Society;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00220247
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS, TRB
• Created Date: Sep 12 1994 12:00AM