Risk and type of crash among young drivers by rurality of residence: Findings from the DRIVE Study

Most previous literature on urban/rural differences in road crashes has a primary focus on severe injuries or deaths, which may be largely explained by variations of medical resources. Little has been reported on police-reported crashes by geographical location, or crash type and severity, especially among young drivers. DRIVE is a prospective cohort study of 20,822 drivers aged 17-24 in New South Wales, Australia. Information on risk factors was collected via online questionnaire and subsequently linked to police-reported crashes. Poisson regression was used to analyze risk of various crash types by three levels of rurality of residence: urban, regional (country towns and surrounds) and rural. Compared to urban drivers, risk of crash decreased with increasing rurality (regional adjusted RR: 0.7, 95% CI 0.6-0.9; rural adjusted RR: 0.5, 95% CI 0.3-0.7). Among those who crashed, risk of injurious crash did not differ by geographic location; however, regional and rural drivers had significantly higher risk of a single versus multiple vehicle crash (regional adjusted RR 1.8, 95% CI 1.3-2.5; rural adjusted RR: 2.0, 95% CI 1.1-3.6), which was explained by speeding involvement and road alignment at the time or site of crash. Although young urban drivers have a higher crash risk overall, rural and regional residents have increased risk of a single vehicle crash. Interventions to reduce single vehicle crashes should aim to address key issues affecting such crashes, including speeding and specific aspects of road geometry.

• Record URL:
  http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6V5S-4W02H8F-2/2/245b2f2284db390c0fd6306e2f164164
• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/00014575
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Abstract reprinted with permission from Elsevier
• Authors:
  • Chen, H Y
  • Ivers, R Q
  • Martiniuk, A L C
  • Boufous, S
  • Senserrick, T
  • Woodward, M
  • Stevenson, M
  • Williamson, A
  • Norton, R
• Publication Date: 2009-7

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Print
• Features: References; Tables;
• Pagination: pp 676-682
• Serial:
  • Accident Analysis & Prevention
  • Volume: 41
  • Issue Number: 4
  • Publisher: Elsevier
  • ISSN: 0001-4575
  • Serial URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/00014575

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Crash severity; Crash types; Regression analysis; Socioeconomic areas; Teenage drivers; Young adults
• Uncontrolled Terms: Cohort analysis
• Geographic Terms: New South Wales
• Subject Areas: Highways; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01137454
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS, ATRI
• Created Date: Jul 31 2009 8:47AM