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53-547: Research in each of these areas is intended to identify the causes and consequences of motor vehicle crashes , evaluate possible countermeasures and solutions, and offer recommendations for achieving the overarching goal of preventing injuries and fatalities on the nation's highways. Research findings are communicated to policymakers, safety partners, and the media, and are used to develop public educational materials, such as brochures, handbooks, videos, and computer games/software. These products are designed to help drivers understand

106-412: A motor vehicle collision , or car crash , occurs when a vehicle collides with another vehicle, pedestrian , animal , road debris , or other moving or stationary obstruction, such as a tree, pole or building. Traffic collisions often result in injury , disability , death , and property damage as well as financial costs to both society and the individuals involved. Road transport is statistically

159-612: A 2006 report, Safety Impacts of Pavement Edge Drop-offs, documented and analyzed the effects such drop-offs have on roadway departure crashes. The study was cited by the Federal Highway Administration 's Office of Safety in its promotion of a cost-effective technology known as the Safety Edge, one of nine countermeasures FHWA considers proven to reduce motor vehicle crashes and improve safety. Traffic collision A traffic collision , also known as

212-551: A crash afraid to drive again. In some cases, psychological trauma may affect individuals' lives, causing difficulty going to work, attending school, or performing family responsibilities. Road incidents are caused by a large number of human factors such as failing to act according to weather conditions, road design, signage, speed limits, lighting conditions, pavement markings, and roadway obstacles. A 1985 study by K. Rumar, using British and American crash reports as data, suggested 57% of crashes were due solely to driver factors, 27% to

265-501: A driver. For example, a collision may be caused by a driver who intends to commit vehicular suicide . Collisions may also be intentionally caused by people who hope to make an insurance claim against the other driver or may be staged for such purposes as insurance fraud. Motor vehicles may also be involved in collisions as part of a deliberate effort to hurt other people, such as in a vehicle-ramming attack or vehicular homicide . A number of physical injuries can commonly result from

318-670: A net increase in road casualties due to a phenomenon known as risk compensation . Observation of driver behaviors before and after seat belt laws does not support the risk compensation hypothesis. Several driving behaviors were observed on the road before and after the belt use law was enforced in Newfoundland, and in Nova Scotia during the same period without a law. Belt use increased from 16 percent to 77 percent in Newfoundland and remained virtually unchanged in Nova Scotia. Four driver behaviors (speed, stopping at intersections when

371-623: A part of the [REDACTED]   Netherlands Antilles . Dissolved on 10 October 2010. Succeeded by Curaçao and Sint Maarten . The high-income threshold was originally set in 1989 at US$ 6,000 in 1987 prices. Thresholds for subsequent years were adjusted taking into account the average inflation in the G-5 countries ( the United States , the United Kingdom , Japan , Germany , and France ), and from 2001, that of Japan ,

424-673: A reaction to consumer pressure, after publications such as Ralph Nader 's 1965 book Unsafe at Any Speed accused motor manufacturers of indifference to safety. In the early 1970s, British Leyland started an intensive program of vehicle safety research, producing a number of prototype experimental safety vehicles demonstrating various innovations for occupant and pedestrian protection such as airbags , anti-lock brakes , impact-absorbing side-panels, front and rear head restraints, run-flat tires, smooth and deformable front-ends, impact-absorbing bumpers, and retractable headlamps. The design has also been influenced by government legislation, such as

477-457: A result suggesting overconfidence in their abilities. Nearly all drivers who had been in a crash did not believe themselves to be at fault. One survey of drivers reported that they thought the key elements of good driving were: Although proficiency in these skills is taught and tested as part of the driving exam, a "good" driver can still be at a high risk of crashing because: the feeling of being confident in more and more challenging situations

530-578: A ten-to-one ratio of in-vehicle fatalities between types of cars. In most cars, occupants have a 2–8% chance of death in a two-car collision. World Bank high-income economy A high-income economy is defined by the World Bank as a country with a gross national income per capita of US$ 14,005 or more in 2023, calculated using the Atlas method . While the term "high-income" is often used interchangeably with " First World " and " developed country ,"

583-503: A vehicle in order to submit lucrative claims to an insurance company. In the United States during the 1990s, criminals recruited Latin American immigrants to deliberately crash cars, usually by cutting in front of another car and slamming on the brakes. It was an illegal and risky job, and they were typically paid only $ 100. Jose Luis Lopez Perez, a staged crash driver, died after one such maneuver, leading to an investigation that uncovered

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636-403: Is a balance to be struck when "improving" the safety of a road. Conversely, a location that does not look dangerous may have a high crash frequency. This is, in part, because if drivers perceive a location as hazardous, they take more care. Collisions may be more likely to happen when hazardous road or traffic conditions are not obvious at a glance, or where the conditions are too complicated for

689-523: Is experienced as evidence of driving ability, and that 'proven' ability reinforces the feelings of confidence. Confidence feeds itself and grows unchecked until something happens – a near-miss or an accident. An Axa survey concluded Irish drivers are very safety-conscious relative to other European drivers. This does not translate to significantly lower crash rates in Ireland. Accompanying changes to road designs have been wide-scale adoptions of rules of

742-534: Is frequently the driver who is blamed rather than the road; those reporting the collisions have a tendency to overlook the human factors involved, such as the subtleties of design and maintenance that a driver could fail to observe or inadequately compensate for. Research has shown that careful design and maintenance, with well-designed intersections, road surfaces, visibility and traffic control devices, can result in significant improvements in collision rates. Individual roads also have widely differing performance in

795-405: Is less efficient than a younger person's. A 1985 US study showed that about 34% of serious crashes had contributing factors related to the roadway or its environment. Most of these crashes also involved a human factor. The road or environmental factor was either noted as making a significant contribution to the circumstances of the crash or did not allow room to recover. In these circumstances, it

848-453: Is reflected by actuaries when they set insurance rates for different age groups, partly based on their age, sex, and choice of vehicle. Older drivers with slower reactions might be expected to be involved in more collisions, but this has not been the case as they tend to drive less and, apparently, more cautiously. Attempts to impose traffic policies can be complicated by local circumstances and driver behavior. In 1969 Leeming warned that there

901-618: The Associated Press updated its style guide to recommend that journalists use "crash, collision, or other terms" rather than "accident" unless culpability is proven. The AP also recommends avoiding "accident" when negligence is proven or claimed because the term "can be read as exonerating the person responsible." In 2021, the American Automobile Association (AAA) passed a resolution to replace "car accident" with "car crash" in their vocabulary. In 2022,

954-618: The Campaign for Safe Road Design , which is calling on the UK Government to make safe road design a national transport priority. Research has shown that, across all collision types, it is less likely that seat belts were worn in collisions involving death or serious injury, rather than light injury; wearing a seat belt reduces the risk of death by about 45 percent. Seat belt use is controversial, with notable critics such as Professor John Adams suggesting that their use may lead to

1007-521: The Euro NCAP impact test . Common features designed to improve safety include thicker pillars, safety glass, interiors with no sharp edges, stronger bodies , other active or passive safety features, and smooth exteriors to reduce the consequences of an impact on pedestrians. The UK Department for Transport publish road casualty statistics for each type of collision and vehicle through its Road Casualties Great Britain report. These statistics show

1060-534: The Portland Bureau of Transportation recommends using "crash" rather than "accident". On the contrary, some have criticized the use of terminology other than accident for holding back safety improvements, based on the idea that such terms perpetuate a culture of blame that may discourage the involved parties from fully disclosing the facts, and thus frustrate attempts to address the real root causes . Some traffic collisions are caused intentionally by

1113-632: The United Kingdom , the United States , and the eurozone . Thus, the thresholds remain constant in real terms over time. To ensure no country falls right on the threshold, country data are rounded to the nearest 10 and income thresholds are rounded to the nearest 5. The following table shows the high-income threshold from 1987 onwards. Countries with a GNI per capita (calculated using the Atlas method) above this threshold are classified by

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1166-527: The United Nations , for example, some high-income countries may also be developing countries. The GCC countries, for example, are classified as developing high-income countries. Thus, a high-income country may be classified as either developed or developing . Although Vatican City is a sovereign state , it is not classified by the World Bank under this definition. According to the World Bank

1219-414: The blunt force trauma caused by a collision, ranging from bruising and contusions to catastrophic physical injury (e.g., paralysis), traumatic or non-traumatic cardiac arrest and death. The CDC estimates that roughly 100 people die in motor vehicle crashes each day in the United States. Following collisions, long-lasting psychological trauma may occur. These issues may make those who have been in

1272-734: The AAA Foundation has published its annual Traffic Safety Culture Index in an effort to benchmark and track key indicators of the public's beliefs and attitudes toward highway safety . Information is collected through a nationally representative Telephone survey that measures both attitudes and behaviors regarding, among other things, drinking and driving , cell phone use/texting behind the wheel , speeding , and seatbelt use. AAA Foundation projects have also been used to help strengthen laws, build public awareness of safety concerns and trends, and advise transportation agencies and highway departments on roadway improvement needs. For example,

1325-790: The Associate Administrator for Motor Carriers of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration wrote a letter stating that "A crash is not an accident", emphasizing that the Department's Research and Special Programs Administration, the Federal Highway Administration , and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration had all declared that "accident" should be avoided in their published writings and media communications. In 2016,

1378-496: The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found that leading contributing factors for fatal crashes included driving too fast for conditions or in excess of the speed limit, operating under the influence, failure to yield right of way, failure to keep within the proper lane, operating a vehicle in a careless manner, and distracted driving. Drivers distracted by mobile devices had nearly four times greater risk of crashing their cars than those who were not. Research from

1431-585: The UK's MOT test or German TÜV conformance inspection. The design of vehicles has also evolved to improve protection after collision, both for vehicle occupants and for those outside of the vehicle. Much of this work was led by automotive industry competition and technological innovation, leading to measures such as Saab 's safety cage and reinforced roof pillars of 1946, Ford's 1956 Lifeguard safety package, and Saab and Volvo 's introduction of standard fit seatbelts in 1959. Other initiatives were accelerated as

1484-601: The Virginia Tech Transportation Institute has found that drivers who are texting while driving are 23 times more likely to be involved in a crash as non-texting drivers. Dialing a phone is the most dangerous distraction, increasing a drivers' chance of crashing by 12 times, followed by reading or writing, which increased the risk by ten times. An RAC survey of British drivers found 78% of drivers thought they were highly skilled at driving, and most thought they were better than other drivers,

1537-531: The combined roadway and driver factors, 6% to the combined vehicle and driver factors, 3% solely to roadway factors, 3% to combined roadway, driver, and vehicle factors, 2% solely to vehicle factors, and 1% to combined roadway and vehicle factors. Reducing the severity of injury in crashes is more important than reducing incidence and ranking incidence by broad categories of causes is misleading regarding severe injury reduction. Vehicle and road modifications are generally more effective than behavioral change efforts with

1590-658: The control light was amber, turning left in front of oncoming traffic, and gaps in following distance) were measured at various sites before and after the law. Changes in these behaviors in Newfoundland were similar to those in Nova Scotia, except that drivers in Newfoundland drove slower on expressways after the law, contrary to the risk compensation theory. A well-designed and well-maintained vehicle, with good brakes, tires and well-adjusted suspension will be more controllable in an emergency and thus be better equipped to avoid collisions. Some mandatory vehicle inspection schemes include tests for some aspects of roadworthiness , such as

1643-435: The event of an impact. In Europe, there are now EuroRAP tests that indicate how "self-explaining" and forgiving a particular road and its roadside would be in the event of a major incident. In the UK, research has shown that investment in a safe road infrastructure program could yield a 1 ⁄ 3 reduction in road deaths, saving as much as £6 billion per year. A consortium of 13 major road safety stakeholders has formed

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1696-552: The exception of certain laws such as required use of seat belts, motorcycle helmets, and graduated licensing of teenagers. Human factors in vehicle collisions include anything related to drivers and other road users that may contribute to a collision. Examples include driver behavior, visual and auditory acuity, decision-making ability, and reaction speed. A 1985 report based on British and American crash data found driver error, intoxication , and other human factors contribute wholly or partly to about 93% of crashes. A 2019 report from

1749-428: The following 86 countries (including territories) are classified as "high-income economies." In brackets are the year(s) during which they held such classification; classifying began in 1987. As of the 2024 fiscal year, high-income economies are those that had a GNI per capita of $ 14,005 or more in 2023. The year(s) during which they held such classification is/are shown in parentheses. Between 1994 and 2009, as

1802-408: The increasing frequency of this type of crash. The U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Highway Administration reviewed research on traffic speed in 1998. The summary says: In the U.S. in 2018, 9,378 people were killed in motor vehicle crashes involving at least one speeding driver, which accounted for 26% of all traffic-related deaths for the year. In Michigan in 2019, excessive speed

1855-431: The introduction of improved brakes resulted in more aggressive driving, and another argued that compulsory seat belt laws have not been accompanied by a clearly attributed fall in overall fatalities. Most claims of risk compensation offsetting the effects of vehicle regulation and belt use laws have been discredited by research using more refined data. In the 1990s, Hans Monderman 's studies of driver behavior led him to

1908-508: The limited human machine to perceive and react in the time and distance available. High incidence of crashes is not indicative of high injury risk. Crashes are common in areas of high vehicle congestion, but fatal crashes occur disproportionately on rural roads at night when traffic is relatively light. This phenomenon has been observed in risk compensation research, where the predicted reductions in collision rates have not occurred after legislative or technical changes. One study observed that

1961-780: The majority of low-income countries have increasing death rates due to traffic collisions. Middle-income countries have the highest rate with 20 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants , accounting for 80% of all road fatalities with 52% of all vehicles. While the death rate in Africa is the highest (24.1 per 100,000 inhabitants), the lowest rate is to be found in Europe (10.3 per 100,000 inhabitants). Traffic collisions can be classified by general types. Types of collision include head-on , road departure , rear-end , side collisions , and rollovers . Many different terms are commonly used to describe vehicle collisions. The World Health Organization uses

2014-519: The median for drivers of all ages. Also within this group, the highest collision incidence rate occurs within the first year of licensed driving. For this reason, many US states have enacted a zero-tolerance policy wherein receiving a moving violation within the first six months to one year of obtaining a license results in automatic license suspension. South Dakota is the only state that allows fourteen-year-olds to obtain drivers' licenses. Various factors such as fatigue or sleep deprivation might increase

2067-546: The most dangerous situation people deal with on a daily basis, but casualty figures from such incidents attract less media attention than other, less frequent types of tragedy. The commonly used term car accident is increasingly falling out of favor with many government departments and organizations, with the Associated Press style guide recommending caution before using the term. Some collisions are intentional vehicle-ramming attacks , staged crashes , vehicular homicide or vehicular suicide . Several factors contribute to

2120-509: The number of road fatalities. A common cause of collisions is driving faster than one can stop within their field of vision . Such practice is illegal and is particularly responsible for an increase in fatalities at night – when it occurs most. Driver impairment describes factors that prevent the driver from driving at their normal level of skill. Common impairments include: Females in this age group exhibit somewhat lower collision and fatality rates than males but still register well above

2173-414: The potential hazards they will face on the road - such as work zones , railroad crossings , and inclement weather - and hone the skills needed to manage these risks and arrive at their destinations safely. The AAA Foundation is also recognized as a leader in promoting the idea of Traffic Safety Culture; that is, a social climate in which traffic safety is highly valued and rigorously pursued. Since 2008,

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2226-675: The realization that signs and regulations had an adverse effect on a driver's ability to interact safely with other road users. Monderman developed shared space principles, rooted in the principles of the woonerven of the 1970s. He concluded that the removal of highway clutter, while allowing drivers and other road users to mingle with equal priority, could help drivers recognize environmental clues. They relied on their cognitive skills alone, reducing traffic speeds radically and resulting in lower levels of road casualties and lower levels of congestion. Some crashes are intended; staged crashes , for example, involve at least one party who hopes to crash

2279-479: The risk of a crash and its severity. On another web page, the RTA qualifies its claims by referring to one specific piece of research from 1997, and writes "Research has shown that the risk of a crash causing death or injury increases rapidly, even with small increases above an appropriately set speed limit." The contributory factor report in the official British road casualty statistics shows for 2006, that "exceeding

2332-573: The risk of collisions, including vehicle design , speed of operation, road design , weather , road environment, driving skills, impairment due to alcohol or drugs , and behavior, notably aggressive driving , distracted driving, speeding and street racing . In 2013, 54 million people worldwide sustained injuries from traffic collisions. This resulted in 1.4 million deaths in 2013, up from 1.1 million deaths in 1990. About 68,000 of these occurred with children less than five years old. Almost all high-income countries have decreasing death rates, while

2385-431: The risk, or the number of hours of driving might increase the risk of an incident. 41% of drivers self-report having fallen asleep at the wheel. It is estimated that 15% of fatal crashes involve drowsiness (10% of daytime crashes, and 24% of nighttime crashes). Work factors can increase the risk of drowsy driving such as long or irregular hours or driving at night. Cell phone use is an increasingly significant problem on

2438-633: The road alongside law enforcement policies that included drink-driving laws, setting of speed limits, and speed enforcement systems such as speed cameras . Some countries' driving tests have been expanded to test a new driver's behavior during emergencies, and their hazard perception. There are demographic differences in crash rates. For example, although young people tend to have good reaction times, disproportionately more young male drivers feature in collisions, with researchers observing that many exhibit behaviors and attitudes to risk that can place them in more hazardous situations than other road users. This

2491-619: The roads and the U.S. National Safety Council compiled more than 30 studies postulating that hands-free is not a safer option because the brain remains distracted by the conversation and cannot focus solely on the task of driving. Several conditions can combine to create a more dangerous situation, for example, low doses of alcohol and cannabis have a more severe effect on driving performance than either in isolation. Taking recommended doses of several drugs together, which individually do not cause impairment, may cause drowsiness. This could be more pronounced in an elderly person whose renal function

2544-402: The speed limit" was a contributory factor in 5% of all casualty crashes (14% of all fatal crashes), and "traveling too fast for conditions" was a contributory factor in 11% of all casualty crashes (18% of all fatal crashes). In France, in 2018, the speed limit was reduced from 90 km/h to 80 km/h on a large part of the local outside built-up area road network in the sole aim of reducing

2597-561: The technical definitions of these terms differ. The term "first world" commonly refers to countries that aligned themselves with the U.S. and NATO during the Cold War . Several institutions, such as the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) or International Monetary Fund (IMF), take factors other than high per capita income into account when classifying countries as "developed" or "advanced economies." According to

2650-447: The term accident , instead preferring terms such as collision , crash or incident . This is because the term accident may imply that there is no one to blame or that the collision was unavoidable, whereas most traffic collisions are the result of driving under the influence , excessive speed , distractions such as mobile phones , other risky behavior, poor road design, or other preventable factors. In 1997, George L. Reagle,

2703-644: The term road traffic injury , while the U.S. Census Bureau uses the term motor vehicle accidents ( MVA ), and Transport Canada uses the term "motor vehicle traffic collision" (MVTC). Other common terms include auto accident , car accident , car crash , car smash , car wreck , motor vehicle collision ( MVC ), personal injury collision ( PIC ), road accident , road traffic accident ( RTA ), road traffic collision ( RTC ), and road traffic incident ( RTI ) as well as more unofficial terms including smash-up , pile-up , and fender bender Many organizations, companies and government agencies have begun to avoid

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2756-639: The traffic management company INRIX announced that "accident" would be removed from their lexicon. The Maryland Department of Transportation 's Highway Safety Office emphasizes that "crashes are no accident", saying that "Using the word accident suggests that an incident was unavoidable, but many roadway crashes can be attributed to human error." The Michigan Department of Transportation states that "accident" should be dropped in favor of "crash", saying that "Traffic crashes are fixable problems, caused by inattentive drivers and driver behavior. They are not accidents." In line with their Vision Zero commitments,

2809-496: Was a factor in 18.8% of the fatalities that resulted from fatal motor vehicle crashes and in 15.6% of the suspected serious injuries resulting from crashes. The Road and Traffic Authority (RTA) of the Australian state of New South Wales (NSW) asserts speeding (traveling too fast for the prevailing conditions or above the posted speed limit ) is a factor in about 40 percent of road deaths. The RTA also says speeding increases

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