Risky Ride or Carefree Drive? An Analysis of Virginia’s Moped Safety and Registration Law on Operator Collision and Injury Outcomes

Abstract

The U.S. State of Virginia enacted a two-phased moped operator law, SB 1038, in 2013 that was intended to reduce collisions and injuries by requiring basic safety equipment, possession of identification (ID), and obtaining vehicle registration. This study evaluates the law’s effect on moped collisions, injuries, and fatalities through a two-part evaluation framework of the pre- and post-policy implementation periods. These components include a series tool, the interrupted time series analysis (ITSA), and a logistic regression of individual-level crash characteristics. The research design controls for gasoline prices, socioeconomic status, roadway conditions, population, seasonality, alcohol consumption, age, and gender, among other factors. Findings from ITSA demonstrate that the implementation of a helmet and ID requirements for moped operator reduced collision rates in the months following that requirement, however no such effect was found for reductions in serious injury and fatality rates, or frequencies following that stage and the vehicle registration requirement (referred to as Phase II). The logistic regression analysis of individual moped collision outcomes similarly found no support for Phase II’s role in reducing the risk of serious injury and fatal outcomes. As a public safety policy, SB 1038 was partially effective through its reduction of moped collisions, though the mechanism for achieving this is unclear. Potential explanations include the policy’s role in reducing the pool of risk-taking individuals through disincentivizing moped use, and mainstreaming safer moped operation. The study’s results indicate that states without moped operator requirements could experience reduced moped collisions from adoption of similar legislation.