| 1. |
- Alm, Håkan, et al.
(author)
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Changes in driver behaviour as a function of handsfree mobile telephones : a simulator study
- 1994
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In: Accident Analysis and Prevention. - : Elsevier BV. - 0001-4575 .- 1879-2057. ; 26:4, s. 441-451
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The effects of a mobile telephone task on drivers' reaction time, lane position, speed level, and workload were studied in two driving conditions (an easy or rather straight versus a hard or very curvy route). It was predicted that the mobile telephone task would have a negative effect on drivers' reaction time, lane position, and workload and lead to a reduction of speed. It was also predicted that the effects would be stronger for the hard driving task. The study was conducted in the VTI driving simulator. A total of 40 subjects, experienced drivers aged 23 to 61, were randomly assigned to four experimental conditions (telephone and easy or hard driving task versus control and easy or hard driving task). Contrary to the predictions, the strongest effects were found when the subjects were exposed to the easy driving task. In the condition where drivers had to perform the easy driving task, findings showed that a mobile telephone task had a negative effect on reaction time and led to a reduction of the speed level. In the condition where drivers had to perform the hard driving task, findings showed that a mobile telephone task had an effect only on the drivers' lateral position. Finally, the mobile telephone task led to an increased workload for both the easy and the hard driving task. The results are discussed in terms of which subtask, car driving or telephone task, the subjects gave the highest priority. Some implications for information systems in future cars are discussed
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| 2. |
- Alm, Håkan, et al.
(author)
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The effects of a mobile telephone task on driver behaviour in a car following situation
- 1995
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In: Accident Analysis and Prevention. - 0001-4575 .- 1879-2057. ; 27:5, s. 707-715
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The effects of a mobile telephone task on young and elderly drivers' choice reaction time, headway, lateral position, and workload were studied when the subjects were driving in a car-following situation, in the VTI driving simulator. It was found that a mobile telephone task had a negative effect upon the drivers' choice reaction time, and that the effect was more pronounced for the elderly drivers. Furthermore, the subjects did not compensate for their increased reaction time by increasing their headway during the phone task. The subjects' mental workload, as measured by the NASA-TLX, increased as a function of the mobile telephone task. No effect on the subjects' lateral position could be detected. Taken together, these results indicate that the accident risk can increase when a driver is using the mobile telephone in a car following situation. The reasons for the increased risk, and possible ways to eliminate it, are also discussed.
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| 3. |
- Gard, Gunvor, et al.
(author)
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Pedestrians on slippery surfaces during winter : methods to describe the problems and practical tests of anti-skid devices
- 2000
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In: Accident Analysis and Prevention. - 0001-4575 .- 1879-2057. ; 32:3, s. 455-460
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Every year there are thousands of pedestrians in Sweden who are injured because of slippery pavements and roadways. Using an appropriate anti-skid device may reduce the risk of slips and falls on ice and snow. Methods to describe functional problems in walking on different slippery surfaces during winter have been developed as rating scales for evaluating walking safety and walking balance and an observation method to observe posture and movements during walking. Practical tests of all 25 anti-skid devices on the market in Sweden were carried out on different slippery surfaces; gravel, sand, salt, snow and ice. The anti-skid devices were described according to the subjects' perception of walking safety, walking balance and priority for own use. The postures and movements during walking were analysed by an expert physical therapist. The wholefoot device 'studs' was perceived as the best according to walking safety and walking balance and had the highest priority for own use.
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| 4. |
- Gard, Gunvor, et al.
(author)
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Test of Swedish anti-skid devices on five different slippery surfaces
- 2001
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In: Accident Analysis and Prevention. - 0001-4575 .- 1879-2057. ; 33:1, s. 1-8
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- AB - The interest for effective preventive strategies for slips and falls is growing. Much remains to be done, however, to prevent slips and falls in the traffic environment. Some pedestrians are injured because of slippery pavements and roadways. Using an appropriate anti-skid device may reduce the risk of slips and falls on different surfaces outdoors during winter. The aim of this study was to evaluate new anti-skid devices on the Swedish market representing three different designs of anti-skid devices; heel device, fore-foot device and whole-foot device on different slippery surfaces, gravel, sand, salt, snow and ice. The evaluations were done according to subject's perceived walking safety and balance, videorecordings of walking postures and movements, time to take on and off each anti-skid device, advantages/disadvantages with each anti-skid device and a list of priority for own use according to three criteria; safety, balance and appearance. Practical tests were carried out on different slippery surfaces, gravel, sand, salt, snow and ice. The subject's were randomly selected from the registered population over 55 years in a city in northern Sweden. The results showed that eight or more of the ten subjects perceived all four anti-skid devices as fairly good or good regarding walking safety and balance when walking on gravel, sand, and salt. Anti-skid device 3, a whole-foot device was perceived as having none or bad walking safety and balance on snow by seven subjects and anti-skid device 4, a heel device, as having none or bad walking balance on ice by all ten subjects. Eight subjects walked with a normal muscle function in the hip and knee with all anti-skid devices on all surfaces. Small deviations in walking posture and movements were noted in one to two subjects when walking on different surfaces, but no systematic difference between the devices. Anti-skid device 1 'Rewa', a fixed heel device, was perceived as the most rapid one to take on. All four devices were perceived as easy to use and as giving good foothold. Anti-skid device 1 'Rewa' and 4 'Thulin-spike', both heel devices, had the highest priority according to walking safety. 'Rewa' also had the highest priority according to walking balance as well as own use. When combining the criterias 'Rewa' had the highest priority according to walking safety and balance, priority for own use, time to take on and easiness to use.
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| 5. |
- Gregersen, Nils Petter, et al.
(author)
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Children's road safety and the strategy of voluntary traffic safety clubs
- 1994
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In: Accident Analysis and Prevention. - 0001-4575 .- 1879-2057. ; 26:4, s. 463-470
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This study focuses on the problem of traffic safety among children and the effectiveness of voluntary traffic clubs. General doubts are growing in regard to this traditional strategy of teaching and training children how to act in specific traffic situations. It has been shown that their knowledge and behavior improve, but the effect on accident risk is not clear. In this study, one model for traditional teaching of this type, a voluntary traffic safety club for children, is evaluated in terms of accident risk. The data have been collected through questionnaires to members and nonmembers of the club. Approximately 20% of Swedish children are members of the club. The results show that members do not have a lower accident risk than nonmembers. On the contrary, the risk in this nonexperimental study is found to be higher among members. The use of safety equipment is, however, higher among members. The results are discussed in terms of systematic differences between the groups, i.e. socioeconomics, and in terms of the possibility that the general strategy of the club leads to overestimation of the safety effect.
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| 6. |
- Gårder, Per, et al.
(author)
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Safety implications of bicycle paths at signalized intersections
- 1994
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In: Accident Analysis and Prevention. - : Elsevier BV. - 0001-4575 .- 1879-2057. ; 26:4, s. 429-439
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This paper presents a quantitative meta-analysis of studies evaluating, by means of the Bayesian method, the safety effectiveness of different bicycle facilities at road junctions. This is preceded by a discussion of background theories and an up-to-date presentation of today's knowledge of the cyclist's safety at intersections; alternative layouts in Scandinavia, and Sweden in particular, are shown. The project consists of a literature survey as well as interviews with experts and cyclists, and an attempt to weave together these different sources in estimating the effect of a particular layout. In summary, few studies from the Scandinavian countries exist that have treated this area with an acceptable methodology. Combined results, with the Bayesian technique, are therefore presented for only one layout comparison: accident risks for cyclists at signalized intersections with and without a cycle path. The results of this aggregation may be unreliable as well, due to deficiencies in the studies. New field studies should be initiated. The "experts'" prior opinion was that the introduction of the cycle path would, on average, increase the risk by about 20%, while interviewed cyclists considered that a cycle path would decrease the risk by about 20%. The conclusion that can be drawn so far from combining results shows that the most likely effect of introducing a cycle path is that the risk will increase by about 40% for a passing cyclist. The probability that the effect will be the opposite, i.e. that the risk will decrease, is very small (about 2%). These combined results are based primarily on cross-section studies, where the layouts have not been "randomly allotted". It is therefore likely that the risk increase may have been overestimated. The probability that the "real" effect is accident reduction is therefore somewhat greater than 2%. How much greater cannot be estimated from these studies
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| 7. |
- Halldin, Peter, et al.
(author)
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An experimental head restraint concept for primary prevention of head and neck injuries in frontal collisions.
- 1998
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In: Accident Analysis and Prevention. - 0001-4575 .- 1879-2057. ; 30:4, s. 535-43
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The Experimental Head Restraint Concept (EHRC), a 'safety belt' for the head, is designed to reduce forces to the head and neck, in frontal car crashes. The EHRC was evaluated experimentally in frontal collision for a crash severity of 11 m/s, and numerically in frontal collision for a crash severity of 11 and 15 m/s. Experimental data obtained from a frontal barrier test (11 m/s) showed a 67% reduction of the HIC value from 411 (without EHRC) to 136 (with EHRC). The same level of reduction was also obtained for the higher speed in the numerical simulation. The moment in the neck was shown in experimental configuration to increase a few percent using the EHRC, but as presented in a numerical analysis, the moment was reduced by stiffening the EHRC. The EHRC clearly has a potential role in the search for primary prevention of neurotrauma injuries in frontal related car crashes. However, there is a strong need for more advanced injury criteria for the neck in order to optimize such complex safety systems.
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| 8. |
- Helander, Martin, et al.
(author)
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An instrumented vehicle for studies of driver behavior
- 1976
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In: Accident Analysis and Prevention. - : Elsevier BV. - 0001-4575 .- 1879-2057. ; 8:4, s. 271-277
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Describes an instrumented car that enables sensing and real-time recording of a driver's physiological characteristics (GSR, heart rate, and muscle activity), his steering and braking, vehicle response (speed, distance travelled, and triaxial accelerations), and traffic events as coded by an observer in the car. Illustrative data are presented for the average responses of 60 drivers on a test road 6 km long.
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| 9. |
- Leden, Lars, et al.
(author)
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Expert judgment model applied to estimating the safety effect of a bicycle facility
- 2000
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In: Accident Analysis and Prevention. - 0001-4575 .- 1879-2057. ; 32:4, s. 589-599
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This paper presents a risk index model that can be used for assessing the safety effect of countermeasures. The model estimates risk in a multiplicative way, which makes it possible to analyze the impact of different factors separately. Expert judgments are incorporated through a Bayesian error model. The variance of the risk estimate is determined by Monte-Carlo simulation. The model was applied to assess the safety effect of a new design of a bicycle crossing. The intent was to gain safety by raising the crossings to reduce vehicle speeds and by making the crossings more visible by painting them in a bright color. Before the implementations, bicyclists were riding on bicycle crossings of conventional Swedish type, i.e. similar to crosswalks but delineated by white squares rather than solid lines or zebra markings. Automobile speeds were reduced as anticipated. However, it seems as if the positive effect of this was more or less canceled out by increased bicycle speeds. The safety per bicyclist was still improved by approximately 20%. This improvement was primarily caused by an increase in bicycle flow, since the data show that more bicyclists at a given location seem to benefit their safety. The increase in bicycle flow was probably caused by the new layout of the crossings since bicyclists perceived them as safer and causing less delay. Some future development work is suggested. Pros and cons with the used methodology are discussed. The most crucial parameter to be added is probably a model describing the interaction between motorists and bicyclists, for example, how risk is influenced by the lateral position of the bicyclist in relation to the motorist. It is concluded that the interaction seems to be optimal when both groups share the roadway.
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| 10. |
- Leden, Lars
(author)
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Pedestrian risk decrease with pedestrian flow : a case study based on data from signalized intersections in Hamilton, Ontario
- 2002
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In: Accident Analysis and Prevention. - 0001-4575 .- 1879-2057. ; 34:4, s. 457-464
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- A unique database provided information on pedestrian accidents, intersection geometry and estimates of pedestrian and vehicle flows for the years 1983-1986 for approximately 300 signalized intersections in Hamilton, Ont., Canada. Pedestrian safety at semi-protected schemes, where left-turning vehicles face no opposing traffic but have potential conflicts with pedestrians, were compared with pedestrian safety at normal non-channelized signalized approaches, where right-turning vehicles have potential conflicts with pedestrians. Four different ways of estimating hourly flows for left- and right-turning vehicles were explored. Hourly flows were estimated for periods of 15 min, hours, two periods a day (a.m. and p.m.) and the 'daily' period (7 h). Parameter estimates were somewhat affected by the time period used for flow estimation. However, parameter estimates seem to be affected far more by the traffic pattern (left- or right-turning traffic), even though approaches were selected such that the situation for left- and right-turning turning traffic was similar (no opposing traffic, no advanced green or other separate phases and no channelization). Left-turning vehicles caused higher risks for pedestrians than right-turning vehicles. At low vehicular flows right turns and semi-protected left turns seemed to be equally safe for pedestrians. When risks for pedestrians were calculated as the expected number of reported pedestrian accidents per pedestrian, risk decreased with increasing pedestrian flows and increased with increasing vehicle flow. As risk decreases with increasing pedestrian flows, promoting walking will have a positive effect on pedestrian risk at signalized intersections.
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