Young driver risky behaviour and predictors of crash risk in Australia, New Zealand and Colombia: Same but different?

Investigating perspectives towards online content that promotes road safety: A qualitative study across three age groups

INTRODUCTION

Social media is an ideal platform for displaying online material that promotes road safety and discourages road rule violations. However, limited research has investigated the impact of online material promoting road safety on attitudes and behavior, and whether different age groups are influenced by such content.

METHOD

The qualitative study explored: (a) opinions and attitudes towards online material/content that promotes road safety/discourages illegal driving behavior; (b) whether participants believe this content can influence attitudes/behavior; and (c) whether these opinions differed across age groups. Sixty-six licensed Queensland drivers participated in a focus group. Three age groups were included: young drivers (17-25 years; n = 21), middle-aged drivers (26-49 years; n = 22), and older drivers (50 + years; n = 23).

RESULTS

The data were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis, resulting in four themes: (1) Metrics behind a persuasive message, (2) Diverse and compelling content, (3) Demographics matter, (4) Each to their own.

CONCLUSIONS

There is the potential for social media to help promote road safety messages. Therefore, these findings have important implications for road safety messaging strategies and future research.

PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS

Future research could benefit by exploring ways to increase exposure to online material promoting road safety and determining which social media platforms are more likely to promote road safety material, with consideration to online algorithms.

The role of driver head pose dynamics and instantaneous driving in safety critical events: Application of computer vision in naturalistic driving

This paper investigates the role of driver behavior especially head pose dynamics in safety-critical events (SCEs). Using a large dataset collected in a naturalistic driving study, this paper analyzes the head pose dynamics and driving behavior in moments leading up to crashes or near-crashes. The study uses advanced computer vision and mixed logit modeling techniques to identify patterns and relationships between drivers' head pose dynamics and crash involvement. The results suggest that driver-head pose dynamics, especially poses that indicate distraction and movement volatility, are important factors that can contribute to undesirable safety outcomes. Marginal effects show that angular deviation for head pose dynamics indicated by yaw, pitch and roll increase the likelihood of crash intensity by 4.56%, 4.92% and 8.26% respectively. Furthermore, traffic flow and lane changing also contribute to increase in likelihood of crash intensity. These findings provide new insights into pre-crash factors, especially human factors and safety-critical events. The study highlights the importance of considering human factors in designing driver assistance systems and developing safer vehicles. This research contributes by examining naturalistic driving data at the microscopic level with early detection of behaviors that lead to SCEs and provides a basis for future research on automation.

Parenting in the context of driving: Spanish adaptation of the Family Climate for Road Safety (FCRSS) for parents and children

The Family Climate for Road Safety Scale (FCRSS; Taubman - Ben-Ari & Katz - Ben-Ami, 2013) is a comprehensive measure originally developed in Israel to assess parent-children relations in the specific context of driving. The scale consists of seven dimensions: Modelling, Feedback, Communication, Monitoring, Messages, Limits, and Non-commitment to Safety. While the original FCRSS examines the young drivers' perception across the seven domains, a version applicable to parents has also been developed by the same authors. The current study investigates the validity and reliability of the FCRSS-Spain for both parents and young drivers. A total of 377 parents (199 fathers and 178 mothers) and 243 of their children (143 daughters and 100 sons) responded to the FCRSS-Spain versions and provided sociodemographic data. In addition, the young drivers completed the Spanish version of the Multidimensional Driving Style Inventory (MDSI-Spain). Results from exploratory structural equation modelling (ESEM) indicate that six out of the seven FCRSS domains were replicable among Spanish drivers. The Messages dimension did not emerge as a consistent factor in the FCRSS for either parents or young drivers. All six factors demonstrated good internal consistency reliability (ordinal alpha coefficients exceeding 0.70), except for Non-commitment to safety. Significant differences were found between mothers and fathers in various FCRSS dimensions in the predicted direction, whereas no significant differences in FCRSS scores were found between young men and young women. As expected, associations were found between parents' scores in various FCRSS dimensions and the reckless, angry, dissociative, anxious, and careful driving styles reported by the young drivers, as well as between young drivers' FCRSS scores and their self-reported reckless, angry, dissociative, anxious, and careful driving styles.

Sharing roads with automated vehicles: A questionnaire investigation from drivers', cyclists' and pedestrians' perspectives

Despite the promised benefits, the introduction of Automated Vehicles (AVs) on roads will be confronted by many challenges, including public readiness to use those vehicles and share the roads with them. The risk profile of road users is a key determinant of their safety on roads. However, the relation of such risk profiles to road users' perception of AVs is less known. This study aims to address the above research gap by conducting a cross-sectional survey to investigate the acceptance of Fully Automated Vehicles (FAVs) among different non-AV-user groups (i.e., pedestrians, cyclists, and conventional vehicle drivers). A total of 1205 road users in Queensland (Australia) took part in the study, comprising 456 pedestrians, 339 cyclists, and 410 drivers. The Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) is used as the theoretical model to examine road users' intention towards sharing roads with FAVs. The risk profile of the participants derives from established behavioural scales and individual characteristics are also included in the acceptance model. The study results show that pedestrians reported lowest intention in terms of sharing roads with FAVs among the three groups. Drivers and cyclists in a lower risk profile group were more likely to report higher intention to share roads with FAVs than those in a higher risk profile group. As age increased, pedestrians were less likely to accept sharing roads with FAVs. Drivers who had more exposure time on roads were more likely to accept sharing roads with FAVs. Male drivers reported higher intention towards sharing roads than female drivers. Overall, the study provides new insights into public perceptions of FAVs, specifically from the non-AV-user perspective. It sheds light on the obstacles that future AVs may encounter and the types of road users that AV manufacturers and policymakers should consider closely. Specifically, groups such as older pedestrians and road users who engage in more risky behaviours might resist or delay the integration of AVs.

The effect of different mobile uses on crash frequency among young drivers: application of statistical models and clustering analysis

This study focuses on investigating the use of mobile phones among young drivers by employing an online questionnaire survey data. Ordinal logistic regression model was used for modelling the probabilities of crashes due to different uses of mobile phone while driving. Moreover, binary logistic regression models were used for predicting the probabilities of different uses of mobile phone. Logistic regression models revealed that texting and internet use have the same likelihood of causing crashes. Drivers having prior experience of being fined for mobile phone use, also showed a higher tendency to be involved in 2 crashes. Moreover, these drivers had a higher likelihood of being involved in texting, as compared to other uses of mobile phones. Drivers with more education had a higher tendency for internet use during driving. Drivers who use mobile phone for long periods during driving have a lesser tendency to get involved in texting, internet use or GPS navigation. Moreover, drivers with a previous crash record have less likelihood of being involved in texting. The models of this study can be useful in developing effective road safety measures. Clustering was also applied in this study which reinforced the findings of the statistical analysis and models.

Investigation on the driver-victim pairs in pedestrian and bicyclist crashes by latent class clustering and random forest algorithm

Pedestrians and bicyclists from marginalized and underserved populations experienced disproportionate fatalities and injury rates due to traffic crashes in the US. This disparity among road users of different races and the increasing trend of traffic risk for underserved racial groups called for an urgent agenda for transportation policy making and research to ensure equity in roadway safety. Pedestrian and bicyclist crashes involved drivers and pedestrians/bicyclists; the latter were usually victims. Traditional safety studies did not account for the interaction between the two parties and assumed that they were independent from each other. In this study we paired the driver and pedestrian/bicyclist involved in the same crash to understand the socioeconomic and demographic make-up of the two parties involved in crashes and assessed the geographic distribution of these crashes and crash-contributing factors. For this purpose, we applied thelatent class clustering analysis (LCA) to classify different crash types and analyze the patterns of the crashes based on the income and ethnicity of both drivers and victims involved in pedestrian and bicyclist crashes. We then used random forest algorithms and partial dependence plots (PDPs) to model and interpreted the contributing factors of the clusters in both pedestrian and bicyclist models. The clustering results showed a pattern of social segregation in pedestrian and bicyclist crashes that drivers and victims with similar socioeconomic characteristics tend to be involved in one crash. Pedestrian/bicyclist exposure, driver's age, victim's age, year of the car in use, annual average daily traffic (AADT), speed limit, roadbed width, and lane width were the most influential factors contributing to this pattern. Crashes that involved drivers and victims with lower income and non-white ethnicity tended to happen in the location with higher pedestrian/bicyclist exposure, higher speed limit, and wider road. The findings of this research can help to inform the decision-making process for improving safety to ensure equitable and sustainable safety for all road users and communities.

The impact of descriptive and injunctive norms on engagement in mobile phone use while driving in young drivers: A systematic review

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES

Prior research indicates that younger adults overestimate their peers' engagement in risk-taking behaviours, with these estimates being directly associated with engagement in such behaviours. However, the extent to which younger adults perceive their peers' approval of, and engagement in, road traffic violations (such as mobile phone use while driving) is yet to be clearly identified. Further, the influence of such perceptions on subsequent mobile phone use while driving behaviours remains unclear. Accordingly, the aim of this systematic review was to (a) examine young drivers' perceptions regarding their peers' approval of (injunctive norms), and engagement in (descriptive norms) mobile phone use while driving and (b) to identify whether such perceptions increase young drivers own engagement in the behaviour.

METHODS

Studies were eligible for review if they measured (a) perceived social norms (descriptive/injunctive) and (b) the relationship between such norms and mobile phone use while driving in younger adults aged 16-25 years. Searches were conducted in December 2021, using Pubmed, Scopus, Web of Science, and TRID. Five articles were included in the review.

RESULTS

Overall, the results indicate that young drivers perceive their peers to engage in mobile phone use while driving on a frequent basis, however they typically believe that their peers disapprove of the behaviour. The majority of studies indicated that descriptive norms were significantly associated with increasing engagement in mobile phone use while driving (including distracted driving behaviours). Finally, the few studies that investigated injunctive norms on mobile phone use while driving indicated positive correlations between perceived peer approval and increasing distracted driving behaviour.

DISCUSSION

The findings highlight the importance of social norms in influencing behaviour, indicating that both descriptive and injunctive norms warrant further investigation when examining the impact of peer influences on mobile phone use while driving.

Risk of Accidents or Chronic Disorders From Improper Use of Mobile Phones: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Background

Mobile phone use has brought convenience, but the long or improper use of mobile phones can cause harm to the human body.

Objective

We aimed to assess the impact of improper mobile phone use on the risks of accidents and chronic disorders.

Methods

We systematically searched in PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane, and Web of Science databases for studies published prior to April 5, 2019; relevant reviews were also searched to identify additional studies. A random-effects model was used to calculate the overall pooled estimates.

Results

Mobile phone users had a higher risk of accidents (relative risk [RR] 1.37, 95% CI 1.22 to 1.55). Long-term use of mobile phones increased accident risk relative to nonuse or short-term use (RR 2.10, 95% CI 1.63 to 2.70). Compared with nonuse, mobile phone use resulted in a higher risk for neoplasms (RR 1.07, 95% CI 1.01 to 1.14), eye diseases (RR 2.03, 95% CI 1.27 to 3.23), mental health disorders (RR 1.16, 95% CI 1.02 to 1.32), and headaches (RR 1.25, 95% CI 1.18 to 1.32); the pooled risk of other chronic disorders was 1.20 (95% CI 0.90 to 1.59). Subgroup analyses also confirmed the increased risk of accidents and chronic disorders.

Conclusions

Improper use of mobile phones can harm the human body. While enjoying the convenience brought by mobile phones, people have to use mobile phones properly and reasonably.

Comparing the cycling behaviours of Australian, Chinese and Colombian cyclists using a behavioural questionnaire paradigm

Cyclists are vulnerable road users and face disproportionately high rates of road trauma, especially in low- and middle-income countries. Behaviour of road users is a system outcome, and thus studying cyclist behaviours can identify problems in the whole road transport system and assist in generating long-lasting, cost-effective solutions to promote cyclist safety. This study aims to investigate the similarities and disparities of cycling behaviour among countries with different income levels and cycling prevalence, and the relationships among cyclist demographic characteristics, behaviours and crash involvement. It applies the Cycling Behaviour Questionnaire (CBQ) to measure the behaviour of cyclists in three countries: Australia (high-income, emerging cycling country), China (mid-income, traditional cycling country) and Colombia (low-income, emerging cycling country). A total of 1094 cyclists (Australia 347, China 368, and Colombia 379) with a mean age of 31.8 years completed the online questionnaire. Confirmatory Factor Analysis was used to examine the factorial structure of the CBQ. The results showed that the three-factor CBQ (i.e., Traffic Violations, Errors and Positive Behaviours) had a stable and uniform factorial structure across all three countries. Cyclists reported more frequent positive behaviours than risky behaviours across all three countries. The Australian cyclists reported more positive behaviours and fewer violations than cyclists from the other countries, which is likely to reflect the road environment, policy and enforcement differences. Male cyclists tended to engage in more risky riding than females and reported more crash involvement. Older cyclists reported less risky riding and less involvement in crashes than younger cyclists. Cyclists who rode more often reported more frequent risky riding. The study helps understand the prevalence of risky/positive cyclist behaviours among countries and provides insights for developing systematic countermeasures to improve cycling environment and cyclist safety.

Risky youth to risky adults: Sustained increased risk of crash in the DRIVE study 13 years on

The objective of this study was to investigate if drivers who exhibit risky driving behaviours during youth (aged 17-24 years) have an increased risk of car crash up to 13 years later. We used data from the DRIVE study, a 2003/04 survey of 20,806 young novice drivers in New South Wales, Australia. The data were linked with police crash, hospital and deaths data up to 2016. We analysed differences in crash associated with 13 items of risky driving behaviours using negative binominal regression models adjusted for driver demographics, driving exposure and known crash risk factors. The items were summarised in one index and grouped into quintiles for the analysis. After adjusting for confounding, drivers of the third (RR 1.16, 95% CI 1.05-1.30), fourth (RR1.22, 95% CI1.09-1.36) and fifth quintile (RR 1.36, 95% CI 1.21-1.53) had higher crash rates compared to the lowest risk-takers. Drivers with the highest scores on the risky driving measure had higher rates of crash related hospital admission or death (RR 1.92, 95% CI 1.13-3.27), crashes in wet conditions (RR 1.35,95% CI 1.05-1.73), crashes in darkness (RR 1.55, 95% CI 1.25-1.93) and head-on crashes (RR 2.14, 95% CI 1.07-4.28), compared with drivers with the lowest scores. Novice adolescent drivers who reported high levels of risky driving when they first obtained a driver licence remained at increased risk of crash well into adulthood. Measures that successfully reduce early risky driving, have the potential to substantially reduce road crashes and transport related injuries and deaths over the lifespan.

Risk-taking behaviors of e-scooter users: A survey in Paris

Risk-taking behavior is often held responsible for increased crash involvement. We designed and undertook a face-to-face road survey (N = 459) in order to explore incident involvement history, driving attitudes and perceived risk among e-scooter users is Paris, France. Three risk factors were specifically explored: (i) riding after having consumed alcohol, (ii) riding after having consumed drugs, and (iii) using the smartphone while riding. The relationship between these factors and user attributes (such as age and gender) and travel behavior (such as frequency of e-scooter usage and trip duration) was examined using logit and mixed logit specifications and a structural equation model. Empirical evidence suggests that it is more likely for young and male riders to develop risky behaviors. Longer trip durations seem to be associated with risk-taking behaviors.

The effects of road safety education on the occurrence of motorcycle violations and accidents for novice riders: An analysis of population-based data

The prevalence of motorcycle riding among novice riders in most Southeast Asia countries presents an alarming rate of traffic violations and fatal accidents. Since 2013, Taiwan's government has gradually required a road safety class (RSC) for the rider's licensing process. The RSC consisted of watching videotapes of motorcycle-involved crashes followed by lectures on safety measures. Our study tried to see whether a compulsory RSC could lower the likelihood and frequency of road accidents and traffic violations among novice riders. To avoid self-selection bias, we selected 480,114 novice riders aged 18-20 years, licensed one year before starting the trial period and one year after full implementation of RSC. Using the 2012-2018 data from the Taiwan Ministry of Transportation and Communication (MOTC), we applied the logistic model to evaluate RSC effects on the risk of violations and accidents. Then, we used the negative binomial regression to model their frequency in response to RSC exposure. Following the novice drivers 1-3 years after licensing, our results showed that the RSC has a short-term effect in lowering their traffic violations' likelihood by 12%∼17% and their frequency by 11%; however, the RSC effects only last two years in reducing the counts of motorcycle-involved offenses and accidents. The RSC reduction effect was lower for the tendency of accidents than the violations, probably because committing traffic violations was self-determined; in contrast, the collision occurrence was more or less related to the riders' own or other road users' carelessness. The RSC could be more effective if a certification test for road safety education were required or if a penalty is imposed on distracted learners during the training.

Driver, Collision and Meteorological Characteristics of Motor Vehicle Collisions among Road Trauma Survivors

Road trauma remains a significant public health problem. We aimed to identify sub-groups of motor vehicle collisions in Victoria, Australia, and the association between collision characteristics and outcomes up to 24 months post-injury. Data were extracted from the Victorian State Trauma Registry for injured drivers aged ≥16 years, from 2010 to 2016, with a compensation claim who survived ≥12 months post-injury. People with intentional or severe head injury were excluded, resulting in 2735 cases. Latent class analysis was used to identify collision classes for driver fault and blood alcohol concentration (BAC), day and time of collision, weather conditions, single vs. multi-vehicle and regional vs. metropolitan injury location. Five classes were identified: (1) daytime multi-vehicle collisions, no other at fault; (2) daytime single-vehicle predominantly weekday collisions; (3) evening single-vehicle collisions, no other at fault, 36% with BAC ≥ 0.05; (4) sunrise or sunset weekday collisions; and (5) dusk and evening multi-vehicle in metropolitan areas with BAC < 0.05. Mixed linear and logistic regression analyses examined associations between collision class and return to work, health (EQ-5D-3L summary score) and independent function Glasgow Outcome Scale - Extended at 6, 12 and 24 months. After adjusting for demographic, health and injury characteristics, collision class was not associated with outcomes. Rather, risk of poor outcomes was associated with age, sex and socioeconomic disadvantage, education, pre-injury health and injury severity. People at risk of poor recovery may be identified from factors available during the hospital admission and may benefit from clinical assessment and targeted referrals and treatments.

Alcohol-impaired Walking in 16 Countries: A Theory-Based Investigation

Alcohol is a global risk factor for road trauma. Although drink driving has received most of the scholarly attention, there is growing evidence of the risks of alcohol-impaired walking. Alcohol-impaired pedestrians are over-represented in fatal crashes compared to non-impaired pedestrians. Additionally, empirical evidence shows that alcohol intoxication impairs road-crossing judgements. Besides some limited early research, much is unknown about the global prevalence and determinants of alcohol-impaired walking. Understanding alcohol-impaired walking will support health promotion initiatives and injury prevention. The present investigation has three aims: (1) compare the prevalence of alcohol-impaired walking across countries; (2) identify international groups of pedestrians based on psychosocial factors (i.e., Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) and perceptions of risk); and (3) investigate how segments of pedestrians form their intention for alcohol-impaired walking using the extended TPB (i.e. subjective norm, attitudes, perceived control, and perceived risk). A cross-sectional design was applied. The target behaviour question was "have you been a pedestrian when your thinking or physical ability (balance/strength) is affected by alcohol?" to ensure comparability across countries. Cluster analysis based on the extended TPB was used to identify groups of countries. Finally, regressions were used to predict pedestrians' intentions per group. A total of 6,166 respondents (Age M(SD) = 29.4 (14.2); Males = 39.2%) completed the questionnaire, ranging from 12.6% from Russia to 2.2% from Finland. The proportion of participants who reported never engaging in alcohol-impaired walking in the last three months ranged from 30.1% (Spain) to 83.1% (Turkey). Four groups of countries were identified: group-1 (Czech Republic, Spain, and Australia), group-2 (Russia and Finland), group-3 (Japan), and group-4 (final ten countries including Colombia, China, and Romania). Pedestrian intentions to engage in alcohol- impaired walking are predicted by perceptions of risk and TPB-psychosocial factors in group-1 and group-4. Favourable TPB-beliefs and low perceived risk increased alcohol-impaired walking intentions. Conversely, subjective norms were not significant in group-2 and only perceived risk predicted intention in group-3. The willingness of pedestrians to walk when alcohol-impaired differs significantly across the countries in this study. Perceived risk was the only common predictor among the 16 countries.

Road Traffic Injuries and Related Safety Measures: A Multicentre Analysis at Military Hospitals in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia

Background

Road traffic injuries are one of the major public safety issues around the world, as they put a great burden on countries' economies. Saudi Arabia has a good road transportation system, but still, road-related fatalities are higher in this country. The main purpose of this study was to determine the association between the severity of injuries caused by road traffic collision and safety measures taken by the drivers admitted to the emergency departments at two military hospitals in Tabuk, a city in Saudi Arabia.

Methods

A total of 342 male drivers who had injuries due to road traffic collision took part in this multicentre, cross-sectional study. The research sites were King Salman Armed Forces Hospital and King Khalid Armed Forces Hospital in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia. The data were collected using a common protocol and a self-reported questionnaire with the help of convenience sampling approach. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression analysis were done using IBM SPSS version 23.

Results

Nearly 62.0% of the male drivers were aged less than 36 years. About 90% of the drivers were from low- and middle-income groups. Logistic regression analysis indicated that drivers who had road traffic collision and used mobile phones while driving were four times more likely to have severe injuries (OR = 3.89; 95% CI (2.53, 5.95)), those who drove the vehicle at an excessive speed limit were three times more likely to have severe injuries (OR = 2.71; 95% CI (1.01, 4.97)), and those who attempted to overtake another vehicle were two times more likely to have severe injuries (OR = 1.85; 95% CI (1.24, 3.77)).

Conclusion

Based on the results of the present study, the most important safety measures which contributed the most to road traffic collision were use of mobile phones while driving the vehicle, driving at an excessive speed limit, irregularity in maintaining the vehicle, attempt to pass other vehicles, and not following the traffic rules. All the safety measures are protective, but if care is not taken, they will risk the life. There is an urgent need to spread traffic safety awareness in this region.

Traffic Crash Characteristics in Shenzhen, China from 2014 to 2016

Road traffic crashes cause fatalities and injuries of both drivers/passengers in vehicles and pedestrians outside, thus challenge public health especially in big cities in developing countries like China. Previous efforts mainly focus on a specific crash type or causation to examine the crash characteristics in China while lacking the characteristics of various crash types, factors, and the interplay between them. This study investigated the crash characteristics in Shenzhen, one of the biggest four cities in China, based on the police-reported crashes from 2014 to 2016. The descriptive characteristics were reported in detail with respect to each of the crash attributes. Based on the recorded crash locations, the land-use pattern was obtained as one of the attributes for each crash. Then, the relationship between the attributes in motor-vehicle-involved crashes was examined using the Bayesian network analysis. We revealed the distinct crash characteristics observed between the examined levels of each attribute, as well the interplay between the attributes. This study provides an insight into the crash characteristics in Shenzhen, which would help understand the driving behavior of Chinese drivers, identify the traffic safety problems, guide the research focuses on advanced driver assistance systems (ADASs) and traffic management countermeasures in China.

Association between Crash Attributes and Drivers' Crash Involvement: A Study Based on Police-Reported Crash Data

Understanding the association between crash attributes and drivers’ crash involvement in different types of crashes can help figure out the causation of crashes. The aim of this study was to examine the involvement in different types of crashes for drivers from different age groups, by using the police-reported crash data from 2014 to 2016 in Shenzhen, China. A synthetic minority oversampling technique (SMOTE) together with edited nearest neighbors (ENN) were used to solve the data imbalance problem caused by the lack of crash records of older drivers. Logistic regression was utilized to estimate the probability of a certain type of crashes, and odds ratios that were calculated based on the logistic regression results were used to quantify the association between crash attributes and drivers’ crash involvement in different types of crashes. Results showed that drivers’ involvement patterns in different crash types were affected by different factors, and the involvement patterns differed among the examined age groups. Knowledge generated from the present study could help improve the development of countermeasures for driving safety enhancement.

A cross-cultural comparison of visual search strategies and response times in road hazard perception testing

Road hazard perception is considered the most prominent higher-order cognitive skill related to traffic-accident involvement. Regional cultures and social rules that govern acceptable behavior may influence drivers' interpretation of a traffic situation and, consequently, the correct identification of potentially hazardous situations. Here, we aimed to compare hazard perception skills among four European countries that differ in their traffic culture, policies to reduce traffic risks, and fatal crashes: Ukraine, Italy, Spain, and Sweden. We developed a static hazard perception test in which driving scenes with different levels of braking affordance were presented while drivers' gaze was recorded. The test required drivers to indicate the action they would undertake: to brake vs. to keep driving. We assessed 218 young adult drivers. Multilevel models revealed that the scenes' levels of braking affordance (i.e., road hazard) modulated drivers' behavior. As the levels of braking affordance increased, drivers' responses became faster and their gaze entropy decreased (i.e., visual search strategy became less erratic). The country of origin influenced these effects. Ukrainian drivers were the fastest and Swedish drivers were the slowest to respond. For all countries, the decrement in response times was less marked in the case of experienced drivers. Also, Spanish drivers showed the most structured (least erratic) visual search strategy, whereas the Italians had the most rigid (most constant) one. These results suggest that road hazard perception can be defined cross-culturally, with cultural factors (e.g., traffic climate, legislation) modulating response times and visual search strategies. Our results also support the idea that a multimodal assessment methodology is possible for mass testing of road hazard perception and its outcomes would be relevant to understand how different traffic cultures shape driving behavior.

Traffic offending and deterrence: An examination of recidivism amongst drivers in Victoria, Australia born prior to 1975

To deter the performance of illegal driving behaviours, traffic infringement notices may be issued. Whilst there is a substantial body of research that has examined rates of reoffending following a traffic infringement, there have been few studies examining the length of time to next traffic offence. Where this research has been conducted, the findings do not provide current understandings, given the substantial changes in traffic sanctioning over time. The aim of this study was to address this gap, by examining risk factors for recidivism following a driver receiving a traffic infringement notice, as well as the time to next traffic offence. Licensing and infringements data held in the Driver Licensing System (DLS), maintained by the road authority in Victoria, Australia were used. All drivers included in the study were born prior to 1975, and received their first Victorian drivers licence between 1994 and 2016. Data from 203,620 drivers were used. Cox proportional hazards modelling was undertaken to examine factors associated with recidivism within 12 months of receiving a traffic infringement. 131,691 (64.7%) drivers had received at least one traffic infringement in Victoria, Australia since receiving their Victorian driver's licence. Factors found to be associated with longer time to further traffic offending in the year that followed the first infringement included being female; receiving a first Victorian driver's licence when aged 45+ years; and being licenced 10+ years. Traffic infringements deter some groups of Victorian drivers, but not others. If drivers are to be deterred from further illegal driving behaviour, it is important other countermeasures are developed and trialled.

Naturalistic Driving Study in Brazil: An Analysis of Mobile Phone Use Behavior while Driving

Mobile phone use (MPU) while driving is an important road safety challenge worldwide. Naturalistic driving studies (NDS) emerged as one of the most sophisticated methodologies to investigate driver behavior; however, NDS have not been implemented in low- or middle-income countries. The aim of this research is to investigate MPU while driving and compare the results to those reported in international studies. An analysis of 61.32 h and 1350 km driven in Curitiba (Brazil) showed that MPU lasted for an average of 28.51 s (n = 627) and occurred in 58.71% of trips (n = 201) with an average frequency of 8.37 interactions per hour (n = 201). The proportion of the trip time using a mobile phone was 7.03% (n = 201), and the average instantaneous speed was 12.77 km/h (n = 627) while using the phone. Generally, drivers spent less time on more complex interactions and selected a lower speed when using the phone. MPU was observed more during short duration than longer trips. Drivers in this study engaged in a larger number of MPU compared to drivers from Netherlands and the United States; and the percentage of trip time with MPU was between North American and European values.

A Comparative Study of Accident Risk Related to Speech-Based and Handheld Texting during a Sudden Braking Event in Urban Road Environments

The use of mobile phones while driving is a very common phenomenon that has become one of the main causes of traffic accidents. Many studies on the effects of mobile phone use on accident risk have focused on conversation and texting; however, few studies have directly compared the impacts of speech-based texting and handheld texting on accident risk, especially during sudden braking events. This study aims to statistically model and quantify the effects of potential factors on accident risk associated with a sudden braking event in terms of the driving behavior characteristics of young drivers, the behavior of the lead vehicle (LV), and mobile phone distraction tasks (i.e., both speech-based and handheld texting). For this purpose, a total of fifty-five licensed young drivers completed a driving simulator experiment in a Chinese urban road environment under five driving conditions: baseline (no phone use), simple speech-based texting, complex speech-based texting, simple handheld texting, and complex handheld texting. Generalized linear mixed models were developed for the brake reaction time and rear-end accident probability during the sudden braking events. The results showed that handheld texting tasks led to a delayed response to the sudden braking events as compared to the baseline. However, speech-based texting tasks did not slow down the response. Moreover, drivers responded faster when the initial time headway was shorter, when the initial speed was higher, or when the LV deceleration rate was greater. The rear-end accident probability respectively increased by 2.41 and 2.77 times in the presence of simple and complex handheld texting while driving. Surprisingly, the effects of speech-based texting tasks were not significant, but the accident risk increased if drivers drove the vehicle with a shorter initial time headway or a higher LV deceleration rate. In summary, these findings suggest that the effects of mobile phone distraction tasks, driving behavior characteristics, and the behavior of the LV should be taken into consideration when developing algorithms for forward collision warning systems.

Sparking the Debate: Facial Injury Patterns from Fireworks

The objective of this article is to estimate the incidence, injury patterns, and demographics of patients presenting to emergency departments (EDs) for facial injury sustained from fireworks. This was an analysis of a nationwide database. The National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) was evaluated for facial injuries from fireworks from 2013 to 2017. Relevant entries were examined for incidence, patient characteristics, location of injury, and type of injury. There were 509 NEISS entries, extrapolating to an estimated 19,816 ED visits for head and neck injuries due to fireworks from 2013 to 2017. The number of visits per year due to fireworks has been relatively stable over the past 5 years with an average of 3,963 cases per year. Greater than 90% of injuries occurred in July. Males comprised the majority of patients (67%), with the median age of 16 years. Most common sites of injury were the eyeballs (41%), followed by midface including eyelids, periorbita, and nose (31%), ears (12%), and only minor incidence of oral injuries (2%). After burns, contusions were the second most common injury from fireworks, followed by lacerations and foreign body injuries. The majority of firework injuries occurred in teenagers, reinforcing the importance of greater safety regulations and age limits for purchasing fireworks. Nearly half the incidents were eye injuries, necessitating greater public education in protective eyewear and mandating their use during festive holidays. Furthermore, injury patterns reported in this analysis may serve as a valuable adjunct for enhancing clinical history taking and physical examination to look for concurrent injuries.

Effect of Road Markings and Traffic Signs Presence on Young Driver Stress Level, Eye Movement and Behaviour in Night-Time Conditions: A Driving Simulator Study

The study investigates how the presence of traffic signalling elements (road markings and traffic signs) affects the behaviour of young drivers in night-time conditions. Statistics show that young drivers (≤30 years old) are often involved in road accidents, especially those that occur in night-time conditions. Among other factors, this is due to lack of experience, overestimation of their ability or the desire to prove themselves. A driving simulator scenario was developed for the purpose of the research and 32 young drivers took two runs using it: (a) one containing no road markings and traffic signs and (b) one containing road markings and traffic signs. In addition to the driving simulator, eye tracking glasses were used to track eye movement and an electrocardiograph was used to monitor the heart rate and to determine the level of stress during the runs. The results show statistically significant differences (dependent samples t-test) between the two runs concerning driving speed, lateral position of the vehicle, and visual scanning of the environment. The results prove that road markings and traffic signs provide the drivers with timely and relevant information related to the upcoming situation, thus enabling them to adjust their driving accordingly. The results are valuable to road authorities and provide an explicit confirmation of the importance of traffic signalling for the behaviour of young drivers in night-time conditions, and thus for the overall traffic safety.

Drivers' gap acceptance behaviours at intersections: A driving simulator study to understand the impact of mobile phone visual-manual interactions

Mobile phone use is often considered to be the main source of distraction on the road. Gap acceptance at intersections is a frequent and complex driving task that requires high visual attention from drivers. This study aims to investigate the effect of mobile phone use on the gap acceptance manoeuvre at intersections. Different mobile phone use positions, intersection type, gap size and driver characteristics were considered in the study. A total of 41 licenced drivers drove in an advanced driving simulator in three phone use conditions: baseline (no phone use), using the phone under the steering wheel (covert) and using the phone above the steering wheel (overt). Drivers drove the simulator three times and experienced two intersection types (straight-forward vs. left-turn) and two gap sizes (4 s vs. 7 s) during each drive. A parametric accelerated failure time (AFT) duration model was developed to evaluate the intersection crossing completion time of drivers. The results showed no significant difference of gap acceptance behaviours between the two phone use positions. The distraction task did not affect drivers' gap acceptance decision, but it increased the crossing completion time by over 10 % compared to baseline. Besides, drivers behaved conservatively at intersections while using a mobile phone, such as adopting a larger deceleration, waiting a longer time, and mainting a larger distance to the front vehicle, etc. However, these compensational behaviours were not helpful in improving the intersection traffic situation regarding both safety and efficiency. Intersection type and gap size were both significant factors of gap acceptance decision and crossing completion time. Additionally, younger drivers were more likely to accept a gap than older drivers, and female drivers spent longer time to cross the intersection than males.

Intelligent Driving Assistant Based on Road Accident Risk Map Analysis and Vehicle Telemetry

Through the application of intelligent systems in driver assistance systems, the experience of traveling by road has become much more comfortable and safe. In this sense, this paper then reports the development of an intelligent driving assistant, based on vehicle telemetry and road accident risk map analysis, whose responsibility is to alert the driver in order to avoid risky situations that may cause traffic accidents. In performance evaluations using real cars in a real environment, the on-board intelligent assistant reproduced real-time audio-visual alerts according to information obtained from both telemetry and road accident risk map analysis. As a result, an intelligent assistance agent based on fuzzy reasoning was obtained, which supported the driver correctly in real-time according to the telemetry data, the vehicle environment and the principles of secure driving practices and transportation regulation laws. Experimental results and conclusions emphasizing the advantages of the proposed intelligent driving assistant in the improvement of the driving task are presented.

Estimating Driving Fatigue at a Plateau Area with Frequent and Rapid Altitude Change

Due to the influence of altitude change on a driver’s heart rate, it is difficult to estimate driving fatigue using heart rate variability (HRV) at a road segment with frequent and rapid altitude change. Accordingly, a novel method of driving fatigue estimation for driving at plateau area with frequent altitude changes is proposed to provide active safety monitoring in real time. A naturalistic driving experiment at Qinghai-Tibet highway was conducted to collect drivers’ electrocardiogram data and eye movement data. The results of the eye movement-based method were selected to enhance the HRV-based driving fatigue degree estimation method. A correction factor was proposed to correct the HRV-based method at the plateau area so that the estimation can be made via common portable devices. The correction factors for both upslope and downslope segments were estimated using the field experiment data. The results on the estimation of revised driving fatigue degree can describe the driver’s fatigue status accurately for all the road segments at the plateau area with altitudes from 3540 to 4767 m. The results can provide theoretical references for the design of the devices of active safety prevention.

Exploring microscopic driving volatility in naturalistic driving environment prior to involvement in safety critical events-Concept of event-based driving volatility

The sequence of instantaneous driving decisions and its variations, known as driving volatility, prior to involvement in safety critical events can be a leading indicator of safety. This study focuses on the component of "driving volatility matrix" related to specific normal and safety-critical events, named "event-based volatility." The research issue is characterizing volatility in instantaneous driving decisions in the longitudinal and lateral directions, and how it varies across drivers involved in normal driving, crash, and/or near-crash events. To explore the issue, a rigorous quasi-experimental study design is adopted to help compare driving behaviors in normal vs unsafe outcomes. Using a unique real-world naturalistic driving database from the 2^nd Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP), a test set of 9593 driving events featuring 2.2 million temporal samples of real-world driving are analyzed. This study features a plethora of kinematic sensors, video, and radar spatiotemporal data about vehicle movement and therefore offers the opportunity to initiate such exploration. By using information related to longitudinal and lateral accelerations and vehicular jerk, 24 different aggregate and segmented measures of driving volatility are proposed that captures variations in extreme instantaneous driving decisions. In doing so, careful attention is given to the issue of intentional vs. unintentional volatility. The volatility indices, as leading indicators of near-crash and crash events, are then linked with safety critical events, crash propensity, and other event specific explanatory variables. Owing to the presence of unobserved heterogeneity and omitted variable bias, fixed- and random-parameter discrete choice models are developed that relate crash propensity to unintentional driving volatility and other factors. Statistically significant evidence is found that driver volatilities in near-crash and crash events are significantly greater than volatility in normal driving events. After controlling for traffic, roadway, and unobserved factors, the results suggest that greater intentional volatility increases the likelihood of both crash and near-crash events. A one-unit increase in intentional volatility is associated with positive vehicular jerk in longitudinal direction increases the chance of crash and near-crash outcome by 15.79 and 12.52 percentage points, respectively. Importantly, intentional volatility in positive vehicular jerk in lateral direction has more negative consequences than intentional volatility in positive vehicular jerk in longitudinal direction. Compared to acceleration/deceleration, vehicular jerk can better characterize the volatility in microscopic instantaneous driving decisions prior to involvement in safety critical events. Finally, the magnitudes of correlations exhibit significant heterogeneity, and that accounting for the heterogeneous effects in the modeling framework can provide more reliable and accurate results. The study demonstrates the value of quasi-experimental study design and big data analytics for understanding extreme driving behaviors in safe vs. unsafe driving outcomes.

Well-being, behavioral patterns and cycling crashes of different age groups in Latin America: Are aging adults the safest cyclists?

Objectives

This study aimed at analyzing the cycling safety-related factors and the mental health indicators of elderly cyclists in comparison with other age groups.

Methods

For this cross-sectional study, we analyzed the data of 911 bicyclists from two Latin American countries that have been experiencing a substantial growth of urban cycling during the last few years: Colombia and Argentina. Participants responded to an e-questionnaire on bicycling behaviors, mental health and cycling safety.

Results

Aging adults reported lower rates of risky behaviors and traffic crashes (around .38 in five years), and, on the other hand, more cycling protective behaviors, a higher risk perception and a better knowledge of traffic norms than both other adults (26–50 years old) and young cyclists (<26). Cycling behaviors and crashes were found to be significantly related to mental health indicators, the latter being higher in aging cyclists. However, this population remains more prone to distractions experienced while cycling than other age groups.

Conclusions

Although the behavioral features of aging adults were comparatively “safer” than the ones displayed by other age groups, factors such as cycling distractions and this population’s over-representation in traffic crashes suggest the need of enforcing policymaking for a better integration of this age segment in alternative transportation dynamics.

Trait driving anger and driving styles among Colombian professional drivers

This study analyzes the association between trait driving anger and driving styles in a sample of Colombian professional drivers. Additionally, the internal and external validity of the Deffenbacher's Driving Anger Scale (DAS-14) was examined in the study population. The DAS-14 and the Spanish Version of the Multidimensional Driving Style Inventory (S-MDSI) were administered to 492 urban bus and taxi operators. Average trait driving anger scores in the study population were similar to those reported in previous validation studies from Spain, Argentina, China, and Malaysia. After deleting three cross-loaded items, confirmatory factor analyses revealed a three-dimensional latent structure for the DAS-14, similar but not equal to the previous Spanish speaking validations. This factorial structure fits the data reasonably well. Finally, linear regression analyses revealed that the three factors of the DAS-14 (impeded progress by others, illegal driving, and direct hostility) significantly predict adaptive and maladaptive driving styles. Overall, the results of this study suggest that the DAS-14 is a reasonably reliable measure of driving anger traits among professional drivers, and it also provides relevant insights for the prevention of risky driving styles in this occupational group.

A Driver's Physiology Sensor-Based Driving Risk Prediction Method for Lane-Changing Process Using Hidden Markov Model

Lane changing is considered as one of the most dangerous driving behaviors because drivers have to deal with the traffic conflicts on both the current and target lanes. This study aimed to propose a method of predicting the driving risks during the lane-changing process using drivers' physiology measurement data and vehicle dynamic data. All the data used in the proposed model were obtained by portable sensors with the capability of recording data in the actual driving process. A hidden Markov model (HMM) was proposed to link driving risk with drivers' physiology information and vehicle dynamic data. The two-factor indicators were established to evaluate the performances of eye movement, heart rate variability, and vehicle dynamic parameters on driving risk. The standard deviation of normal to normal R-R intervals of the heart rate (SDNN), fixation duration, saccade range, and average speed were then selected as the input of the HMM. The HMM was trained and tested using field-observed data collected in Xi'an City. The proposed model using the data from the physiology measurement sensor can identify dangerous driving state from normal driving state and predict the transition probability between these two states. The results match the perceptions of the tested drivers with an accuracy rate of 90.67%. The proposed model can be used to develop proactive crash prevention strategies.

Simulated Driving Performance, Self-Reported Driving Behaviors, and Mental Health Symptoms in Adolescent Novice Drivers

BACKGROUND

Risky driving behaviors contribute to adolescent injury, disability, and death, yet little is known about how mental health factors are associated with adolescent driving behaviors.

OBJECTIVES

The purpose of the research was to determine the association of risky driving behaviors and mental health symptoms in novice adolescent drivers.

METHODS

We recruited a convenience sample (n = 60) of adolescents to complete an assessment of driving performance errors in a high-fidelity simulator (Simulated Driving Assessment [SDA] Error Score) and a self-report measure of risky driving (Behavior of Young Novice Drivers Survey [BYNDS]). Participants also completed a mental health assessment of self-reported symptoms of depression (Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression Scale) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD; inattention and hyperactivity-impulsivity), conduct disorder, and oppositional defiant disorder (Conners-3 self-report and parent report). We evaluated the cross-sectional relationships between SDA Error Score, BYNDS, and mental health survey data with descriptive statistics, bivariate correlations, and linear regression.

RESULTS

In linear regression models, higher self-reported inattentive ADHD T-scores were associated with higher SDA Error Score (model adjusted R = .20). Higher self-reported T-scores of hyperactive-impulsive ADHD and conduct disorder were associated with higher BYNDS total scores (model adjusted R = .32). Parent report measures were not associated with adolescent BYNDS total score or SDA Error Score.

DISCUSSION

These data highlight the association of risky driving with adolescent symptoms of inattention, hyperactivity, and conduct disorder. The early stage of independent driving is an important time for addressing the relationship between driving performance and mental health conditions.

Modeling and mitigating fatigue-related accident risk of taxi drivers

Taxi drivers worldwide often have very long driving hours and experience frequent fatigue. These conditions are associated with a high prevalence of fatigue and accidents. However, the key factors that distinguish high/low fatigue-related accident risk (FRAR) taxi drivers are uncertain. By examining a series of potential factors related with fatigue or accident risk as discussed in previous research, the objective was to find out the most important factors that relate to taxi driver's FRAR, and to investigate the association of these factors and taxi driver's FRAR. Modeling methods were applied to questionnaire data collected from Beijing taxi drivers. A 269-sample dataset was analyzed to identify key factors related to FRAR and to fit FRAR prediction models. The model's performance on high-risk driver prediction was then tested using another independently collected 100-sample dataset. High-risk taxi drivers had significantly longer driving hours per working day, lower rest ratios, less driving experience, and were more confident about their fatigue resistance. The FRAR model with only four major measurable predictors achieved a sensitivity of 91.9% and a specificity of 94.6% on predicting labeled data. Adjusting drive-rest habits and self-evaluation pertaining to these predictors is good for high-risk drivers to mitigate their accident risk. It was concluded that taxi drivers' drive-rest habits, experience, and intention for fatigue driving are crucial, and to a large degree determine their FRAR, and the prediction model can satisfactorily identify high-risk taxi drivers.

Study of driving skill level discrimination based on human physiological signal characteristics

The primary purpose of the study is to distinguish the differences in driving skill between novice and experienced drivers from the viewpoint of human cognitive behavior. Firstly, EEG (electroencephalogram) signals were collected using EEG acquisition equipment called Neuroscan. The δ sub-band and EOG (electrooculogram) signals were extracted from the EEG. Furthermore, the eye movement rate and the sample entropy (SampEn) values of δ sub-bands were calculated. Finally, the heart rate variability (HRV) characteristics, calculated using the SampEn algorithm, were used to analyze driving skill. The final result showed that human physiological signals (EEG, EOG and ECG (electrocardiogram)) could effectively distinguish different driving skills.

Fast and furious: A neglected issue in health promotion among young drivers

ISSUES ADDRESSED

This paper investigates the influence of mood while driving, advocates for identifying high-risk groups and detects associations between mood while driving and risky driving behaviours. While commensurate studies regarding aggressive driving have confirmed significant detriments in driving performance, little scholarly research has studied the gaps and opportunities at the intersection of mood and risky driving in young drivers.

METHODS

A cross-sectional design was implemented using 660 young drivers (17-25 years) from Australia (34.7%) and Colombia (65.3%), who completed the Behaviour of Young Novice Drivers Scale (BYNDS). Cluster analysis differentiated young drivers across two groups: high-risk and low-risk driving while influenced by mood. Hierarchical segmentation analysis explored the relationship between driver mood and self-reported risky driving behaviour.

RESULTS

Young drivers reported frequent driving while influenced by mood. The typical risky driving behaviours of young drivers who are emotion-affected are transient violations (eg, speeding) and risky exposure (eg, driving tired).

CONCLUSIONS

Risky driving behaviours that have been found to increase the risk of road injury (speeding, fatigued driving) and to decrease the survivability of road crashes (speeding) are inextricably intertwined with the influence of driver mood upon driving behaviour at an international level. Driver mood is a neglected issue in health promotion programs for young drivers. SO WHAT?: Current health promotion interventions for young drivers safety such as Graduated Driver Licensing may not prevent driving while influenced by mood. Additional strategies are required to minimise the exposure to driving while affected by negative mood.

Should I Text or Call Here? A Situation-Based Analysis of Drivers' Perceived Likelihood of Engaging in Mobile Phone Multitasking

This study investigated how situational characteristics typically encountered in the transport system influence drivers' perceived likelihood of engaging in mobile phone multitasking. The impacts of mobile phone tasks, perceived environmental complexity/risk, and drivers' individual differences were evaluated as relevant individual predictors within the behavioral adaptation framework. An innovative questionnaire, which includes randomized textual and visual scenarios, was administered to collect data from a sample of 447 drivers in South East Queensland-Australia (66% females; n = 296). The likelihood of engaging in a mobile phone task across various scenarios was modeled by a random parameters ordered probit model. Results indicated that drivers who are female, are frequent users of phones for texting/answering calls, have less favorable attitudes towards safety, and are highly disinhibited were more likely to report stronger intentions of engaging in mobile phone multitasking. However, more years with a valid driving license, self-efficacy toward self-regulation in demanding traffic conditions and police enforcement, texting tasks, and demanding traffic conditions were negatively related to self-reported likelihood of mobile phone multitasking. The unobserved heterogeneity warned of riskier groups among female drivers and participants who need a lot of convincing to believe that multitasking while driving is dangerous. This research concludes that behavioral adaptation theory is a robust framework explaining self-regulation of distracted drivers.

Understanding the psychological precursors of young drivers' willingness to speed and text while driving

This study applied the Prototype Willingness Model (PWM) to investigate the factors that may predict young drivers' (non-intentional) willingness to text while driving, text while stopped, and engage in high and low levels of speeding. In addition, the study sought to assess whether general optimism bias would predict young drivers' willingness to text and speed over and above the PWM. Licenced drivers (N = 183) aged 17-25 years (M = 19.84, SD = 2.30) in Queensland, Australia completed an online survey. Hierarchical multiple regressions revealed that the PWM was effective in explaining the variance in willingness to perform all four illegal driving behaviours. Particularly, young drivers who possessed favourable attitudes and a positive prototype perception towards these behaviours were more willing to engage in texting and speeding. In contrast to the study's predictions, optimistically biased beliefs decreased young drivers' willingness to text while stopped and engage in high and low levels of speeding. The findings of the study may help inform policy and educational campaigns to better target risky driving behaviours by considering the influence of attitudes, prototypes and the non-intentional pathway that may lead to engagement in texting while driving and stopped and engagement in high and low levels of speeding.

Preventing pediatric cardiothoracic trauma: Role of policy and legislation

Data from the last 50 years suggest that pediatric patients typically suffer cardiothoracic injuries following blunt traumatic force (70%) in the setting of either motor vehicle crashes (53.5%) or vehicle-pedestrian accidents (18.2%). Penetrating trauma accounts for 30% of pediatric cardiothoracic injuries, half of which are gunshot wounds. Graduated driver licensing programs, gun-control legislation, off-road vehicle regulation, initiatives such as "Prevent the Bleed", as well as professional society recommendations are key in preventing pediatric cardiothoracic injuries.

Autonomous emergency braking systems adapted to snowy road conditions improve drivers' perceived safety and trust

OBJECTIVE

This study investigated drivers' evaluation of a conventional autonomous emergency braking (AEB) system on high and reduced tire-road friction and compared these results to those of an AEB system adaptive to the reduced tire-road friction by earlier braking. Current automated systems such as the AEB do not adapt the vehicle control strategy to the road friction; for example, on snowy roads. Because winter precipitation is associated with a 19% increase in traffic crashes and a 13% increase in injuries compared to dry conditions, the potential of conventional AEB to prevent collisions could be significantly improved by including friction in the control algorithm. Whereas adaption is not legally required for a conventional AEB system, higher automated functions will have to adapt to the current tire-road friction because human drivers will not be required to monitor the driving environment at all times. For automated driving functions to be used, high levels of perceived safety and trust of occupants have to be reached with new systems. The application case of an AEB is used to investigate drivers' evaluation depending on the road condition in order to gain knowledge for the design of future driving functions.

METHODS

In a driving simulator, the conventional, nonadaptive AEB was evaluated on dry roads with high friction (μ = 1) and on snowy roads with reduced friction (μ = 0.3). In addition, an AEB system adapted to road friction was designed for this study and compared with the conventional AEB on snowy roads with reduced friction. Ninety-six drivers (48 males, 48 females) assigned to 5 age groups (20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, and 60-75 years) drove with AEB in the simulator. The drivers observed and evaluated the AEB's braking actions in response to an imminent rear-end collision at an intersection.

RESULTS

The results show that drivers' safety and trust in the conventional AEB were significantly lower on snowy roads, and the nonadaptive autonomous braking strategy was considered less appropriate on snowy roads compared to dry roads. As expected, the adaptive AEB braking strategy was considered more appropriate for snowy roads than the nonadaptive strategy. In conditions of reduced friction, drivers' subjective safety and trust were significantly improved when driving with the adaptive AEB compared to the conventional AEB. Women felt less safe than men when AEB was braking. Differences between age groups were not of statistical significance.

CONCLUSIONS

Drivers notice the adaptation of the autonomous braking strategy on snowy roads with reduced friction. On snowy roads, they feel safer and trust the adaptive system more than the nonadaptive automation.

Infrastructural and Human Factors Affecting Safety Outcomes of Cyclists

The increasing number of registered road crashes involving cyclists during the last decade and the high proportion of road crashes resulting in severe injuries and fatalities among cyclists constitutes a global issue for community health, urban development and sustainability. Nowadays, the incidence of many risk factors for road crashes of cyclists remains largely unexplained. Given the importance of this issue, the present study has been conducted with the aim of determining relationships between infrastructural, human factors and safety outcomes of cyclists. Objectives: This study aimed, first, to examine the relationship between key infrastructural and human factors present in cycling, bicycle-user characteristics and their self-reported experience with road crashes. And second, to determine whether a set of key infrastructural and human factors may predict their self-reported road crashes. Methods: For this cross-sectional study, a total of 1064 cyclists (38.8% women, 61.2% men; M = 32.8 years of age) from 20 different countries across Europe, South America and North America, participated in an online survey composed of four sections: demographic data and cycling-related factors, human factors, perceptions on infrastructural factors and road crashes suffered. Results: The results of this study showed significant associations between human factors, infrastructural conditions and self-reported road crashes. Also, a logistic regression model found that self-reported road crashes of cyclists could be predicted through variables such as age, riding intensity, risky behaviours and problematic user/infrastructure interactions. Conclusions: The results of this study suggest that self-reported road crashes of cyclists are influenced by features related to the user and their interaction with infrastructural characteristics of the road.

The sex disparity in risky driving: A survey of Colombian young drivers

OBJECTIVE

The overrepresentation of young drivers in poor road safety outcomes has long been recognized as a global road safety issue. In addition, the overrepresentation of males in crash statistics has been recognized as a pervasive young driver problem. Though progress in road safety evidenced as a stabilization and/or reduction in poor road safety outcomes has been made in developed nations, less-developed nations contribute the greatest road safety trauma, and developing nations such as Colombia continue to experience increasing trends in fatality rates. The aim of the research was to explore sex differences in self-reported risky driving behaviors of young drivers, including the associations with crash involvement, in a sample of young drivers attending university in Colombia.

METHODS

The Spanish version of the Behaviour of Young Novice Drivers Scale (BYNDS-Sp) was applied in an online survey to a sample of 392 students (225 males) aged 16-24 years attending a major university. Appropriate comparative statistics and logistic regression modeling were used when analyzing the data.

RESULTS

Males reported consistently more risky driving behaviors, with approximately one quarter of all participants reporting risky driving exposure. Males reported greater crash involvement, with violations such as speeding associated with crash involvement for both males and females.

CONCLUSION

Young drivers in Colombia appear to engage in the same risky driving behaviors as young drivers in developed nations. In addition, young male drivers in Colombia reported greater engagement in risky driving behaviors than young female drivers, a finding consistent with the behaviors of young male drivers in developed nations. As such, the research findings suggest that general interventions such as education, engineering, and enforcement should target transient rule violations such as speeding and using a handheld mobile phone while driving for young drivers in Colombia. Future research should investigate how these interventions could be tailored specifically for the Colombian cultural context, including how their effects can be evaluated, prior to implementation.

Adolescent resilience to addiction: a social plasticity hypothesis

The prevalence of substance use disorders is highest during adolescence; however, many adolescents experience a natural resolution of their substance use by early adulthood, without any formal intervention. Something appears to be unique and adaptive about the adolescent brain. In this Review, we examine the roles of the social environment and neurocognitive development in adolescents' natural resilience to substance use disorders. At present, little is known about the neurocognitive mechanisms that underlie this adaptive phenomenon, since neurodevelopmental studies have mainly focused on the risk side of the substance use equation: escalation of substance use. To provide a framework for future studies, we put forth a social plasticity model that includes developmentally limited enhanced social attunement (ie, the need to harmonise with the social environment), affective processing, and brain plasticity, which underlie adolescents' capacity to learn from and adapt to their constantly evolving social environments.

Young drivers and their cars: Safe and sound or the perfect storm?

Consistent with the experiences in high-income countries, young drivers remain overrepresented in road trauma statistics in low- and middle-income countries. This article pursues the emerging interest of approaching the young driver problem from a systems thinking perspective in order to design and deliver robust countermeasures. Specifically, the focus of this paper is the cars driven by young drivers. The study of vehicles' characteristics and their interaction with driving behaviour is, more often than not, considered a minor concern when developing countermeasures in young drivers' safety not only in developed nations, but especially in developing nations. Participants completed an online survey containing the 44-item Behaviour of Young Novice Drivers Scale Spanish version (BYNDS-Sp), in addition to providing information regarding their vehicle, any crash involvement, and driving offences. Based on the vehicle model information, the assessment of vehicle safety was conducted for three safety programs (ANCAP, Latin NCAP, U.S. NCAP). Young drivers in Colombia reported a breadth of risky driving behaviours worth targeting in broader interventions. For example, interventions can target speeding, particularly as three quarters of the participants drove small-medium cars associated with poorer road safety outcomes. Moreover, risky driving exposure was highly prevalent amongst the young driver participants, demonstrating the need for them to be driving the safest vehicles possible. It is noteworthy that few cars were able to be assessed by the Latin NCAP (with half of the cars rated having only 0-2 star ratings), and that there was considerable discrepancy between ANCAP, U.S. NCAP, and Latin NCAP ratings. The need for system-wide strategies to increase young driver road safety-such as improved vehicle safety-is vital to improve road safety outcomes in jurisdictions such as Colombia. Such improvements may also require systemic changes such as enhanced vehicle safety rating scales and investigation of the nature of vehicles sold in developing nations, particularly as these vehicles typically contain fewer safety features than their counterparts sold in developed nations.

Risk factors of mobile phone use while driving in Queensland: Prevalence, attitudes, crash risk perception, and task-management strategies

Distracted driving is one of the most significant human factor issues in transport safety. Mobile phone interactions while driving may involve a multitude of cognitive and physical resources that result in inferior driving performance and reduced safety margins. The current study investigates characteristics of usage, risk factors, compensatory strategies in use and characteristics of high-frequency offenders of mobile phone use while driving. A series of questions were administered to drivers in Queensland (Australia) using an on-line questionnaire. A total of 484 drivers (34.9% males and 49.8% aged 17-25) participated anonymously. At least one of every two motorists surveyed reported engaging in distracted driving. Drivers were unable to acknowledge the increased crash risk associated with answering and locating a ringing phone in contrast to other tasks such as texting/browsing. Attitudes towards mobile phone usage were more favourable for talking than texting or browsing. Lowering the driving speed and increasing the distance from the vehicle in front were the most popular task-management strategies for talking and texting/browsing while driving. On the other hand, keeping the mobile phone low (e.g. in the driver's lap or on the passenger seat) was the favourite strategy used by drivers to avoid police fines for both talking and texting/browsing. Logistic regression models were fitted to understand differences in risk factors for engaging in mobile phone conversations and browsing/texting while driving. For both tasks, exposure to driving, driving experience, driving history (offences and crashes), and attitudes were significant predictors. Future mobile phone prevention efforts would benefit from development of safe attitudes and increasing risk literacy. Enforcement of mobile phone distraction should be re-engineered, as the use of task-management strategies to evade police enforcement seems to dilute its effect on the prevention of this behaviour. Some countermeasures and suggestions were proposed in the design of public education campaigns and driver-mobile phone interaction.

Effects of road infrastructure and traffic complexity in speed adaptation behaviour of distracted drivers

The use of mobile phones while driving remains a major human factors issue in the transport system. A significant safety concern is that driving while distracted by a mobile phone potentially modifies the driving speed leading to conflicts with other road users and consequently increases crash risk. However, the lack of systematic knowledge of the mechanisms involved in speed adaptation of distracted drivers constrains the explanation and modelling of the extent of this phenomenon. The objective of this study was to investigate speed adaptation of distracted drivers under varying road infrastructure and traffic complexity conditions. The CARRS-Q Advanced Driving Simulator was used to test participants on a simulated road with different traffic conditions, such as free flow traffic along straight roads, driving in urbanized areas, and driving in heavy traffic along suburban roads. Thirty-two licensed young drivers drove the simulator under three phone conditions: baseline (no phone conversation), hands-free and handheld phone conversations. To understand the relationships between distraction, road infrastructure and traffic complexity, speed adaptation calculated as the deviation of driving speed from the posted speed limit was modelled using a decision tree. The identified groups of road infrastructure and traffic characteristics from the decision tree were then modelled with a Generalized Linear Mixed Model (GLMM) with repeated measures to develop inferences about speed adaptation behaviour of distracted drivers. The GLMM also included driver characteristics and secondary task demands as predictors of speed adaptation. Results indicated that complex road environments like urbanization, car-following situations along suburban roads, and curved road alignment significantly influenced speed adaptation behaviour. Distracted drivers selected a lower speed while driving along a curved road or during car-following situations, but speed adaptation was negligible in the presence of high visual cutter, indicating the prioritization of the driving task over the secondary task. Additionally, drivers who scored high on self-reported safe attitudes towards mobile phone usage, and who reported prior involvement in a road traffic crash, selected a lower driving speed in the distracted condition than in the baseline. The results aid in understanding how driving task demands influence speed adaptation of distracted drivers under various road infrastructure and traffic complexity conditions.