DRIVING SPEEDS AND PEDESTRIAN SAFETY: A MATHEMATICAL MODEL

We know that pedestrian safety depends a great deal on vehicular speed. However, it would be of value to know more exactly the nature of the interdependence between speed and safety. In this study, the connection between driving speed and the safety of the pedestrians has been estimated by applying a mathematical method based on the random nature of accidents and the theory of probability. The relationship between the degree of seriousness of an accident and the collision speed is defined on the basis of the results of previously documented case studies. The interdependence between vehicular speed, the probability of accidents, and collision speed is examined by theoretical computations. The risk of death is chosen as the measure of pedestrian safety. It indicates the probability of a pedestrian getting run over by a vehicle and, having been run over, the probability of death. The explanatory variables are vehicle speed, driver's brake reaction time, deceleration of the vehicle and the time that the pedestrian remains in the vehicle's collision course.

• Corporate Authors:

  Helsinki University of Technology, Finland

  02150 Espoo 15,   Finland 
• Authors:
  • PASANEN, E
• Publication Date: 1992

Language

• French

Media Info

• Pagination: 41 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Crash severity; Crash tests; Crashes; Mathematical models; Motor vehicles; Pedestrian safety; Speed; Testing; Traffic speed
• Subject Areas: Highways; Research; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00634273
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: REPT-77
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Jul 27 1993 12:00AM