RESEARCH NOTES - INJURY RISK AS A FUNCTION OF AGE OF VEHICLES AND INJURY REDUCTION IN 1967, 1968 AND 1969 MODEL CARS

IN A PREVIOUS ARTICLE THE AUTHOR SUGGESTED THAT THE INTRODUCTION OF CRASH COUNTERMEASURES IN VEHICLES MANUFACTURED AFTER 1965---SEATBELTS, ENERGY-ABSORBING STEERING COLUMNS, HIGH-PENETRATION-RESISTANCE WINDSHIELDS, ETC.---WOULD REDUCE FATALITY RISK BY 3--10 PER CENT IN 1966 CARS AND BY 10--25 PER CENT IN 1967 AND LATER MODELS. IN THE MEANTIME, CAMPBELL STUDIED INJURIES TO UNBELTED DRIVERS IN 270,000 VEHICLES INVOLVED IN CRASHES IN NORTH CAROLINA IN 1966 AND 1968. HE CONCLUDED THAT THE INJURY INDEX DEVELOPED IN HIS STUDY CLEARLY SHOWED A DECLINE IN RISK BETWEEN 1961 AND 1968 MODELS. IN THE PRESENT PAPER A RISK INDEX IS DEFINED THAT GIVES, FOR ANY YEAR, THE RISK OF INJURY IN AN ACCIDENT INVOLVING A VEHICLE OF A GIVEN AGE RELATIVE TO THE AVERAGE OF ALL ACCIDENT-INVOLVED CARS. THE INDEX DIFFERS FROM CAMPBELL'S IN THAT IT DOES NOT CONSIDER SPEED, IMPACT SITE, AND ACCIDENT TYPE; INCLUDES VEHICLES OTHER THAN CARS; COUNTS ANY INJURY; AND INCLUDES BELTED DRIVERS. THE DATA BASE IS DRAWN FROM VIRGINIA AND NEW HAMPSHIRE ACCIDENT STATISTICS FOR THE YEARS 1961--1966. IN VIRGINIA, A REDUCTION FOR THE MODEL YEARS 1967, 1968, AND 1969 IS SUGGESTED. IN NEW HAMPSHIRE, A REDUCTION FOR 1968 MODELS WOULD BE COMPATIBLE WITH THE DATA BUT IS LESS CONVINCING BECAUSE OF VARIATIONS IN PAST VALUES LARGER THAN THOSE OF VIRGINIA.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/00014575
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Vol 3, No 3, PP 201-207, 5 FIG, 4 REF
• Corporate Authors:

  Pergamon Press, Incorporated

  Headington Hill Hall
  Oxford OX30BW,    
• Publication Date: 1971-10

Media Info

• Serial:
  • Accident Analysis & Prevention
  • Volume: 3
  • Issue Number: 3
  • Publisher: Elsevier
  • ISSN: 0001-4575
  • Serial URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/00014575

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Age; Fatalities; Injuries; Mathematical models; Motor vehicles; Safety; Service life
• Uncontrolled Terms: Models; Vehicle age
• Subject Areas: Design; Highways; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00223683
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: HS-011 409
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Jan 17 1972 12:00AM