A COMPARISON OF THE ACCIDENT RATES OF AUTO CHECK VEHICLES VERUS UNINSPECTED VEHICLES

The objective of this study was to determine the effects the Alabama automotive diagnostic inspection facility (Auto Check) has had on the accident rate of Huntsville residents who had accidents in Madison County. The inspected vehicles had a significantly lower accident rate than the uninspected vehicles. The Auto Check accident rates were adjusted for sex, age and ZIP. A comparison of the Auto Check participant with the driver involved in an accident indicates that the person bringing the car to Auto Check for the first periodic inspection is probably not the principal driver. The accident rates for the various Huntsville ZIP codes indicate that those areas with higher education and income have lower accident rates than the less educated, poorer areas. Many of those areas of higher education and income appear to have a greater accident rate reduction after having their vehicles inspected. For the 1968 through 1973 vehicles, the older, uninspected vehicles were more likely to be involved in an accident. However, for the inspected vehicles, the older vehicles were less likely to be involved in an accident. These data suggest a strong dependency of the accident rate on vehicle mechanical condition. An unexpectedly high accident rate was observed for middle-aged females. A review of accident rates for time of day, day of month and month of year strongly indicates that this high accident rate may be due to the large numbers of these middle-aged females that are on the road after they have picked up their school children. /SRIS/

• Supplemental Notes:
  • Related report: SRIS 771085 entitled The Effects of Automobile Inspections on Accident Rates.
• Corporate Authors:

  University of Alabama, Huntsville

  Auto Check
  Huntsville, AL  United States 
• Authors:
  • Schroer, B J
  • Peyton, W F
• Publication Date: 1976-11-1

Media Info

• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 103 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Age; Alternatives analysis; Automobiles; Crash rates; Education; Gender; Income; Inspection; Motor vehicles; Vehicle performance
• Subject Areas: Highways; Safety and Human Factors; Society;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00178503
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: National Safety Council Safety Research Info Serv
• Report/Paper Numbers: Report No. UAH 195 Final Rpt.
• Contract Numbers: DOT-HS-5-01056
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Sep 14 1978 12:00AM