Pedestrian Accidents Research Articles

Optimized Right-Turn Pedestrian Collision Avoidance System Using Intersection LiDAR

The incidence of right-turning pedestrian accidents is increasing in South Korea. Most of the accidents occur when a large vehicle is turning right, and the main cause of the accidents was found to be the driver’s limited field of vision. After these accidents, the government implemented a series of institutional measures with the objective of preventing such accidents. However, despite the institutional arrangements in place, pedestrian accidents continue to occur. We focused on the many limitations that autonomous vehicles, like humans, can face in such situations. To address this issue, we propose a right-turn pedestrian collision avoidance system by installing a LiDAR sensor in the center of the intersection to facilitate pedestrian detection. Furthermore, the urban road environment is considered, as this provides the optimal conditions for the model to perform at its best. During this research, we collected data on right-turn accidents using the CARLA simulator and ROS interface and demonstrated the effectiveness of our approach in preventing such incidents. Our results suggest that the implementation of this method can effectively reduce the incidence of right-turn accidents in autonomous vehicles.

On the influence of AVAS directivity on electric vehicle speed perception

Electric vehicles (EVs) typically produce minimal noise at low driving speeds, increasing the risk of accidents for pedestrians and other vulnerable road users. Therefore, regulations require EVs to use acoustic vehicle alerting systems (AVAS) that emit artificial warning sounds. Investigating the human response to these AVAS sounds requires laboratory listening experiments, often based on auralizations. One of the challenges when auralizing electric vehicles is to include AVAS radiation directivity. However, it is currently unknown how this directivity affects the perception of a vehicle passing by and whether an accurate reproduction is necessary for auralizations. We present a study on the influence of AVAS directivity on perceived vehicle speed, comparing different radiation patterns in combination with narrowband and tonal AVAS signals in a paired comparison listening experiment with 31 participants. The results show that AVAS radiation directivity can significantly influence the perception of vehicle pass-by speed, with a tendency for omnidirectional patterns to be perceived slower than more directional patterns. Additionally, most participants consistently rated either the tonal or the narrowband noise AVAS signal as faster throughout most comparisons. This indicates that AVAS signal type can affect vehicle speed perception with a subjective preference between tonal and narrowband noise AVAS.

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Incidence, Etiology, Demographics, and Treatment of Craniomaxillofacial Trauma.

To compare the incidence, etiology, demographics, and treatment of craniomaxillofacial (CMF) trauma before, during, and after COVID-19. Retrospective cohort. Eighty-three health care organizations across the United States. The TriNetX Research Network identified 77,977,880 patients during 2017 to 2022. CMF fractures and soft tissue injuries during March to August of each year, aligning with the 2020 pandemic lockdown, were analyzed. In 2020, compared to immediately prepandemic in 2019, there were significant reductions of -17.5% in facial fractures and -19.0% in soft tissue injuries (P < .001). Conversely, in 2021, both injury types increased by +16.7% and +16.3%, respectively, compared to 2020 (P < .001). Changes in injury mechanisms in 2020 included significant decreases in athletic injuries (-57.6%), falls (-16.8%), assaults (-15.5%), motor vehicle collisions (-8.7%), and pedestrian accidents (-6.9%) (P < .01), while off-road vehicle (+48.4%), bicycle (+16.2%), and motorcycle (+8.9%) accidents increased (P < .01). The 10- to 14- and 5- to 9-year-old age groups experienced the most substantial reductions in facial fractures (-39.7% and -29.9%, respectively) and soft tissue injuries (-29.2% and -28.3%, respectively) in 2020 compared to 2019 (P < .001). Operative management of fractures and soft tissue injuries dropped by -20.3% and -12.4%, respectively, in 2020 versus 2019, and then rebounded with +15.8% and +14.6% increases in 2021 compared to 2020 (P < .001). In 2022, compared to prepandemic rates of 2019, there were fewer patients with facial fractures (-2.8%), soft tissue injuries (-4.5%), and operative repairs (-6.9% for fractures, -1.2% for soft tissue injuries) (P < .03). CMF trauma decreased in 2020, with subsequent years showing a rebound to levels slightly below those immediately prior to pandemic onset. Changes in etiology, demographics, and treatment highlight the complex dynamics of traumatic injuries during periods of societal disruption.

Co-location analysis of pedestrian accident attributes for Ankara

Even though accidents with pedestrians are more likely to have a severe or fatal outcome, most research concentrates on the vehicle part of the accidents. To make better policies and infrastructure decisions it is crucial to understand how and why such accidents happen. In this article, 2.588 pedestrian accidents from the year 2018 that resulted in injury or death in the city of Ankara, Türkiye are considered, and different attributes are analyzed co-location-wise. Three types of analysis will be undertaken for these accidents: temporal, natural environment, and pedestrian characteristics. The season of the year, weekend-weekday, and time of day will be explored for the temporal analysis. Visibility (daylight, twilight, and darkness) and rain are the natural surroundings of interest. The analyzed pedestrian characteristics are age group, gender, clothing colour, and nationality. Generally, the accident properties are evenly distributed and mostly the higher co-locations occur with themselves. Three important results stand out in this study. Firstly, the type of precaution appropriate to different time periods of the day should be applied, taking into account the locations that have the strongest co-location with themselves. Secondly, a seasonal approach should be adopted in determining places where pedestrian safety needs to be increased in the city. Lastly, pedestrian safety measures targeting especially both ‘0–14 and 65 + age groups’ and ‘foreign citizenship’ should be prioritized in the identified locations. The results show that the co-location methodology is a good fit for analyzing pedestrian accidents and a wider use of this methodology for other accident types and in general might be beneficial.

Analysis of serious trauma injury patterns in Navarre (Spain) (2010-2019)

The aim of this study is to describe major trauma cases in Navarre and analyze differences based on mortality groups, sex, and mode of injury. Cross-sectional study of major traumas (severity =3) registered in Navarre between 2010 and 2019. We analyzed the type of trauma, intentionality, the mode of injury, and the affected anatomical area. The odds ratio for major trauma associated with different variables was calculated. The study included 2,609 patients; mean age was 54.7 years (0-101) and 70.9% were male. A predominance of accidental (84%) / blunt (94.7%) major traumas was recorded, primarily resulting from falls (46.5%) and car accidents (18.4%). Women experienced more falls and pedestrian accidents, while men had more motorcycle, bicycle, knife/firearm accidents, and contusions. Most major traumas affected the head and thorax. Head trauma was significantly more common in deceased individuals and women, while thoracic trauma was more frequent in patients who died on-site and in men. Head injuries were caused by falls from low heights and firearms, whereas thoracic injuries resulted from car accidents and falls from height. The risk of major trauma decreased with age; deceased patients were between two and three times more likely to present lesions in all anatomical areas. Gender differences are observed in intentionality, type, and mode of injury. Head and thoracic injuries are potentially life-threatening and abdominal and extremity/pelvic ring injuries are associated with early deaths. This suggests that the extent and severity of these injuries complicate treatment and management.

Közúti közlekedési balesetben megsérült gyalogosok számának csökkentési lehetőségei

Összefoglalás. A közlekedési balesetekben sérült személyek, valamint a baleset miatti anyagi károk jelentős mértékű társadalmi-gazdasági veszteségértéket képviselnek. Kutatásommal célom a közlekedés biztonságosabbá tételéhez szükséges kulcsterületek feltárása és a lehetséges potenciális beavatkozási területek meghatározása volt. Munkám során a 2016–2020 közötti közlekedési balesetek adatait elemeztem leíró statisztikai módszerrel. Megállapítottam, hogy a leginkább kritikus pont a gyalogosok közlekedése. Azokban a balesetekben, ahol volt gyalogos sérült, a balesetek két okcsoportja dominál: gyalogosok hibája (34,3%), valamint a járművezetők gyalogosok részére történő elsőbbségadásának elmaradása (38,1%). Az eredmények lehetőséget adnak a további célirányos vizsgálatokra, valamint a hatékony beavatkozásokra. Summary. Transport is an essential part of everybody lives. The aim of transport users is to make their journeys without accidents in the shortest possible time, while optimising their individual resources and inputs. The number of people injured in road traffic accidents with personal injury and the material damage caused by a significant socio-economic loss. By preventing accidents, it is clear that the costs and resources spent on road accidents can be reduced. Therefore, I started my research by determining the share of road user groups in the number of accidents, the number of people injured and the amount of economic loss value associated with accidents. I analysed road accidents between 2016 and 2020. By the accident analysis, I found that among vulnerable road users, the proportion of pedestrians and cyclists injured was extremely high. Injuries in these two transport modes accounted for more than half of the injuries in cars. By calculating the loss value, I found that the damage to the national economy caused by pedestrian injuries was significant. In my research, by analysing the causes of accidents, I found that in accidents where there was a pedestrian injured, two groups of causes dominate: pedestrian error (34.3%) and drivers not giving priority to pedestrians (38.1%). Examining the accident data, it was evident that the number of pedestrian accidents due to pedestrian error is very high, so I continued my research in the area of other activities of pedestrians while walking. I measured pedestrians in 10 locations in Budapest. During the measurements, I recorded and analysed data of 11536 persons. The average rate of distraction was 54.3%, which means that one in two pedestrians is doing some other activity while walking. The most frequent activity was talking to another pedestrian (29.8%), but phone use (15.7%) and head/earphone use (13.5%) were also very significant. My research results so far show that if we want to improve pedestrian safety, we need to reduce accidents caused by pedestrians’ own fault and increase drivers’ willingness to give priority to pedestrians. My research plans also include investigating ways to reduce pedestrian errors, increasing pedestrian awareness and examining pedestrian-driver interactions in more depth. I already have results in this area, but my aim is to identify target areas (including human, infrastructure, vehicle field) for my research that can be implemented in practice, thus helping to improve pedestrian safety and road safety.

Adrenal gland injury in trauma patients and its impact on clinical outcomes.

Adrenal gland injury (AGI) associated with trauma is an uncommon and often overlooked condition. This study aimed to evaluate the frequency of AGI in individuals with severe trauma injuries and investigate the outcomes of patients with AGI. All patients admitted to a tertiary trauma referral center under the trauma protocol who had a computed tomography (CT) scan between January 2012 and January 2023 were analyzed retrospectively. Patients who were dead on arrival and patients with incomplete data were excluded. They were classified into two main groups, adult and pediatric, and further subcategorized by the presence or absence of radiologically evident AGI. Demographic data, mechanism of injury, injury severity scores (ISS), presence of concurrent abdominal injury, and 30-day mortality rates were compared. A separate analysis was performed for factors affecting mortality rates. A total of 1,253 patients were included: 950 adults and 303 pediatric patients. In the adult group, AGI was detected in 45 (4.7%) patients and was more commonly associated with the following mechanisms of injury: motor vehicle accidents (26.7% vs. 14.3%) and pedestrian accidents (37.8% vs. 15.5%). Injury to the right side was more common (55.6%). Patients with AGI had higher rates of concurrent liver (17.8% vs. 3.9%), spleen (11.1% vs. 3.6%), and kidney injuries (15.6% vs. 1.3%). In the pediatric population, AGI was detected in 30 patients (14.8%), a significantly higher rate compared to the adult group. Similar to the adult group, AGI was more commonly associated with concurrent abdominal injuries and had a right-sided dominance (60%), but the rate of concurrent abdominal injuries was higher in the pediatric group (80% vs. 46%). The 30-day mortality was significantly higher in both adult and pediatric AGI groups compared to patients without AGI (adult: 15.6% vs. 2.9%, pediatric: 10% vs. 1.8%). In patients with AGI, major head and neck injuries and chest injuries were associated with mortality. Adrenal gland injuries due to trauma are not uncommon. They are usually associated with blunt trauma and other concurrent abdominal organ injuries. The major contributors to mortality in patients with AGI were major head and neck injuries and chest injuries.

MAS-Bench: a benchmarking for parameter calibration of multi-agent crowd simulation

Multi-agent simulation (MAS) has attracted significant attention for the prevention of pedestrian accidents and the spread of infectious diseases caused by overcrowding in recent years. In the MAS paradigm, each pedestrian is represented by a single agent. Control parameters for each agent need to be calibrated based on pedestrian traffic data to reproduce phenomena of interest accurately. Furthermore, observing all pedestrian traffic at large-scale events such as festivals and sports games is difficult. In such cases, parameter optimization is essential so that the appropriate parameters can be determined by solving an error minimization problem between the simulation results and incomplete observed pedestrian traffic data. We propose a benchmark problem, namely MAS-Bench, to discuss the performance of MAS parameter calibration methods uniformly. Numerical experiments demonstrate the baseline performance of four well-known optimization methods on six different error minimization problems that are defined on MAS-Bench. Moreover, we investigate the validity of the error function in the calibration by evaluating the correlation between the calibration and estimation scores. These scores are error functions relating to the available and unavailable observations, respectively.

Impact of urban form and street infrastructure on pedestrian-motorist collisions

This study examines the impact of urban form and street infrastructure on pedestrian safety in Atlanta, Georgia, and Boston, Massachusetts. With a significant rise in pedestrian fatalities over the past decade, understanding how cities’ built environments influence safety is critical. We conducted geospatial analyses and statistical tests, revealing unique patterns in each city. Atlanta’s sprawling, motorist-oriented layout is associated with increased pedestrian accidents, particularly at crosswalks, due to limited land use diversity, arterial roads, and streets with high speed limits and multiple lanes. In contrast, Boston’s compact, pedestrian-oriented design leads to improved safety, featuring safer pedestrian crossings, greater land use diversity, reduced arterial roads and lower speed limits on single-lane streets. This study also highlights the importance of diverse urban forms and pedestrian infrastructure in shaping pedestrian safety. While population density and land use diversity impact accident rates, the presence of crosswalks and street configurations play crucial roles. Our findings underscore the urgency for urban planners to prioritize pedestrian safety through targeted interventions, such as enhancing crosswalks, reducing speed limits and promoting mixed land use. Future research should explore additional variables, alternative modelling techniques and non-linear approaches to gain a more comprehensive understanding of these complex relationships.

Unveiling Urban Vulnerabilities: Analysis of Pedestrian Safety and Experience at 2 No Gate, A Major Arterial Road in Chittagong, Bangladesh

In developing countries such as Bangladesh, pedestrian safety is a pressing concern due to inadequate infrastructureand increased vehicular traffic resulting in frequent conflicts between pedestrians and vehicles in urban areas.Chittagong is the second-largest city in Bangladesh where, in addition to road accidents, pedestrians also encounterchallenges due to the prevalent issue of water clogging caused by the inadequate drainage system. The study aims toanalyze the experience and the multifaceted risks faced by pedestrians in Chittagong which include road safetyconcerns as well as the threats during monsoon seasons. The research gathers data leading to twofold investigationson 2-no. gate area, based on the physical infrastructure and the road users’ behavior using human perception analysis,an in-depth questionnaire survey, and examining the previously occurring accidents. Analyzing the data, the paper hasattempted to shed light on the major causes and factors of pedestrian accidents in the area and suggested appropriateguidelines to reduce accidents and enhance pedestrian movement facilities in similar scenarios.

Optimization of Traffic Safety for Motorists with Raised Intersection Design at Intersection in DKI Jakarta

Urbanization trends, coupled with the proliferation of motor vehicles, have led to escalating environmental challenges like congestion and pollution. Sustainable transportation systems are increasingly imperative to address these issues, necessitating pedestrian-friendly urban environments to promote sustainable mobility. However, escalating traffic density poses serious safety concerns for pedestrians, exacerbated by improper use of pedestrian facilities. Statistical data underscores the vulnerability of pedestrians, with a notable percentage of traffic fatalities attributed to pedestrian accidents. To mitigate these risks, enhancing pedestrian safety through various measures, including raised crosswalks, has garnered attention. Raised crosswalks offer promising potential to improve pedestrian safety by influencing driver behavior and enhancing pedestrian visibility. This research aims to explore the impact of raised crosswalks on traffic safety in Indonesian urban environments. Through quantitative analysis and video observation, the study evaluates the effectiveness of raised crosswalks in enhancing safety and traffic compliance at intersections. The findings reveal varying severity levels of near-miss accidents, suggesting targeted risk mitigation strategies. Regression analysis indicates a substantial reduction in vehicle speed post-implementation, although other influencing factors persist. Moreover, Cost-Benefit Analysis underscores the financial viability of pedestrian crossing enhancements, emphasizing the potential for significant gains. Ultimately, this research contributes empirical insights to inform policy formulation and infrastructure design, facilitating safer and more sustainable pedestrian environments in Indonesian urban areas.

Incidence of Polytrauma in the Casualty Emergency Department of a Tertiary Care Hospital in Dhaka City

Background: Polytrauma is a public health problem in every country. Objective: The purpose of the present study was to assess the incidence of Polytrauma in the Casualty Emergency Department of a tertiary care hospital in Dhaka city. Methodology: This cross-sectional study was carried out in the casualty of Emergency Department of Dhaka Medical College Hospital, Dhaka, Bangladesh. The patients who were admitted from January 2014 to December 2014 were included in this study. This study includes all the patients with polytrauma, most of whom underwent laparotomy or other types of surgery like suprapubic cystostomy, amputation, surgical toileting, chest drainage, but a small number was managed with non-operative approach. Immediately after admission, the patients were subjected to resuscitation, primary survey and history taking including pre-hospital retrieval. A tabulated sheet of questionnaire was given to all the patients and answer was taken by conversation and examination. Results: A total number of 100 patients were recruited for this study. The mean age with SD of the study population was 33.5±12.5 with the range of 3 to 67 years. The male female ratio is 7.33:1. The victims of polytrauma sustained their injury from different kinds of trauma. Out of hundred cases with polytrauma, road traffic accidents was the most common cause which included motor vehicle accident, pedestrian and motor cycle accident and resulted in a total of 63 casualty occupying 63% of the entire series. Polytrauma resulted fall from height occurred in 10 (10%) cases. Stab injury caused polytrauma in 5 (5%) cases. Conclusion: In conclusion majority of the study population is young adult with the predominance of male presented with road traffic accident. Journal of Current and Advance Medical Research, July 2023;10(2):60-64

A proof of concept model to calculate white and grey matter AIS injuries in pedestrian collisions

In the real world, the severity of traumatic injuries is measured using the Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) and is often estimated, in finite element human computer models, with the maximum principal strains (MPS) tensor. MPS can predict when a serious injury is reached, but cannot provide any AIS measures lower and higher from this. To overcome these limitations, a new organ trauma model (OTM2), capable of calculating the threat to life of any organ injured, is proposed. The OTM2 model uses a power method, namely peak virtual power, and defines brain white and grey matters trauma responses. It includes human age effect (volume and stiffness), localised impact contact stiffness and provides injury severity adjustments for haemorrhaging. The focus, in this case, is on real-world pedestrian brain injuries. OTM2 model was tested against three real-life pedestrian accidents and has proven to reasonably predict the post mortem (PM) outcome. Its AIS predictions are closer to the real-world injury severity than the standard maximum principal strain (MPS) methods currently used. This proof of concept suggests that OTM2 has the potential to improve forensic predictions as well as contribute to the improvement in vehicle safety design through the ability to measure injury severity. This study concludes that future advances in trauma computing would require the development of a brain model that could predict haemorrhaging.

A Study on the Feng Shui Characteristics of “Pedestrian Accident Hotspots” in Seoul (Focusing on traffic accident analysis system data)

A Study on the Feng Shui Characteristics of “Pedestrian Accident Hotspots” in Seoul (Focusing on traffic accident analysis system data)

Enhancing Automatic Vehicle Number Plate Recognition Systems: A Multidimensional Approach to Improve Efficiency and Applicability

Real Time Number Plate Recognition System is an image processing technology which uses number (license) plate to identify the vehicle. The objective is to design an efficient automatic authorized vehicle identification system by using the vehicle number plate. No plate help for movement of traffic securely without any collision. They can reduce the number of accidents on roads like pedestrian accident and right-angle collision of two cars. Number plate recognition (NPR) can be used in various fields such as vehicle tracking, traffic monitoring, automatic payment of tolls on highways or bridges, surveillance systems, tolls collection points, and parking management systems. The developed system first detects the vehicle and then captures the vehicle image. Vehicle number plate region is localized using Neural Network(rcnn) then image segmentation is done on the image. Character recognition technique is used for the character extraction from the plate. The system is implemented and simulated in python, and its performance is tested on real image. Automatic vehicle detection and recognition is a key technique in most of traffic related applications and is an active research topic in the image processing domain. Different methods, techniques and algorithms have been developed for vehicle detection and recognitions but they are not very useful for parking system. In this project we aim to make an application which will help for society and mostly for corporation buldings in each state for doing their work very efficiently and in very small time. Live camera feeds are the primary input we give the system. On the main gate is a camera. When a car or bike passes in front of the camera, the camera reads the number plate number. Using an OCR algorithm, this vehicle can be determined to be authorized or not. If the car is not allowed in the premises the notification will be activated. authorized popup will be on if the vehicle is authorized

Obesity as a Risk Factor for Adverse Outcomes After Pedestrian Trauma Accidents in the Pediatric Population.

The aim of the study is to determine whether overweight or obese children are at an increased risk for injury and adverse outcomes following pedestrian motor vehicle accidents. We performed a retrospective study of patients between the ages of 2 and 17 who were pedestrians injured in a collision with a motorized vehicle, presenting to a level 1 trauma center, between January 1, 2010, to December 31, 2021. Patients with admission weights falling above the 90th percentile of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's sex-specific growth charts were identified as overweight/obese, those below the cutoff were categorized as nonobese. Groups were compared regarding demographics, mechanism of injury, Injury Severity Score, and Abbreviated Injury Scale by body region of injury. Outcome measures included hospital admission, length of hospital stay, intensive care unit (ICU) admission, ICU length of stay, and mortality. Of the 306 patients included, 72 (23.5%) were overweight/obese and 234 (76.5%) were nonobese. The mean Injury Severity Score scores were higher among overweight/obese patients (5.37 vs 8.74, P = 0.008). Overweight/obese children were more likely to sustain severe abdominal injuries (Abbreviated Injury Scale ≥ 3) (12.2% vs 5.1%; odds ratio [OR], 2.64; 95% CI, 1.07-6.56; P = 0.030), be admitted to the hospital (94.5% vs 74.3%; OR, 12.07; 95% CI, 2.87-50.72; P < 0.001), require ICU admission (31.0% vs 20.0%, OR, 1.87; 95% CI, 1.03-3.36; P = 0.036), and require a longer ICU stay (0.9 vs 0.4 days, P = 0.014) compared with nonobese patients. Obese and overweight children are at increased risk for higher injury severity scores, severe abdominal injuries, and ICU admission after pedestrian motor vehicle accidents.

Environmental measures to improve pedestrian safety in low- and middle-income countries: a scoping review.

This scoping study aims to identify environmental road safety measures implemented in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) to reduce pedestrian injuries from collisions with motor vehicles. This review followed Arksey and O'Malley's approach and reported results using the PRISMA-SCR 2018 checklist. A literature review was conducted in Medline, Google Scholar, and the Transport Research International Documentation database using keyword-derived medical subject heading terms. A total of 14 articles met the pre-established inclusion criteria and were analyzed using a data extraction matrix. The findings were categorized methodically into three prominent themes: (1) methods for reducing pedestrian exposure, (2) traffic calming strategies, and (3) measures for enhancing pedestrian visibility. Traffic calming strategies, including vehicular speed reduction, roadway contraction, and vertical and horizontal diversionary tactics, emerged as the most effective interventions for reducing pedestrian injuries within LMICs. Conversely, interventions geared towards minimizing pedestrian exposure, such as zebra crossings, crosswalks controlled by traffic signals, underpasses, or overpasses, often produced minimal effects, and occasionally exacerbated the risk of pedestrian accidents. Lack of pedestrian visibility due to density of street vendors and parked vehicles was associated with a higher risk of injuries, while billboards impaired drivers' attention and increased the likelihood of collisions with pedestrians. In LMICs, the effectiveness of environmental measures in reducing vehicle-pedestrian crashes varies widely. In the face of resource constraints, implementing interventions for pedestrian safety in LMICs necessitates careful prioritization and consideration of the local context.

The effects of ambient temperature on road traffic injuries in Jinan city: a time-stratified case-crossover study based on distributed lag nonlinear model.

The impact of climate change, especially extreme temperatures, on health outcomes has become a global public health concern. Most previous studies focused on the impact of disease incidence or mortality, whereas much less has been done on road traffic injuries (RTIs). This study aimed to explore the effects of ambient temperature, particularly extreme temperature, on road traffic deaths in Jinan city. Daily data on road traffic deaths and meteorological factors were collected among all residents in Jinan city during 2011-2020. We used a time-stratified case-crossover design with distributed lag nonlinear model to evaluate the association between daily mean temperature, especially extreme temperature and road traffic deaths, and its variation in different subgroups of transportation mode, adjusting for meteorological confounders. A total of 9,794 road traffic deaths were collected in our study. The results showed that extreme temperatures were associated with increased risks of deaths from road traffic injuries and four main subtypes of transportation mode, including walking, Bicycle, Motorcycle and Motor vehicle (except motorcycles), with obviously lag effects. Meanwhile, the negative effects of extreme high temperatures were significantly higher than those of extreme low temperatures. Under low-temperature exposure, the highest cumulative lag effect of 1.355 (95% CI, 1.054, 1.742) for pedal cyclists when cumulated over lag 0 to 6 day, and those for pedestrians, motorcycles and motor vehicle occupants all persisted until 14 days, with ORs of 1.227 (95% CI, 1.102, 1.367), 1.453 (95% CI, 1.214, 1.740) and 1.202 (95% CI, 1.005, 1.438), respectively. Under high-temperature exposure, the highest cumulative lag effect of 3.106 (95% CI, 1.646, 5.861) for motorcycle occupants when cumulated over lag 0 to 12 day, and those for pedestrian, pedal cyclists, and motor vehicle accidents all peaked when persisted until 14 days, with OR values of 1.638 (95% CI, 1.281, 2.094), 2.603 (95% CI, 1.695, 3.997) and 1.603 (95% CI, 1.066, 2.411), respectively. This study provides evidence that ambient temperature is significantly associated with the risk of road traffic injuries accompanied by obvious lag effect, and the associations differ by the mode of transportation. Our findings help to promote a more comprehensive understanding of the relationship between temperature and road traffic injuries, which can be used to establish appropriate public health policies and targeted interventions.

Analysis of the elderly pedestrian traffic accidents in urban scenarios: the case of the Spanish municipalities

As the elderly population grows, there is a greater concern for their safety on the roads. This is particularly important for elderly pedestrians who are more vulnerable to accidents. In Spain, one of the most aged countries in the world, the elderly accounted for 70% of all pedestrian deaths in 2019. In this study, the focus was on analysing the occurrence of elderly pedestrian-vehicle collisions in Spanish municipalities and how it is related to the built environment. The study used the hurdle negative binomial model to analyse the number of elderly and non-elderly pedestrian accidents per municipality in 2016-2019. The exploratory analysis showed that cities above 50,000 inhabitants were safer for the elderly, and larger provincial capitals had lower elderly pedestrian traffic accident rates. The occurrence of all pedestrian traffic accidents was linked to the socio-demographic features. For elderly pedestrians, land use was found to be influential, with a lower proportion of land covered by manufacturing and service activities linked to a smaller number of accidents. Results showed that improving road safety for older pedestrians may not necessarily compromise the situation for the rest of population. Hence, policymakers should focus on infrastructure improvements adapted to the needs of elderly pedestrians.

Parametric analysis of craniocerebral injury mechanism in pedestrian traffic accidents based on finite element methods

PurposeThe toughest challenge in pedestrian traffic accident identification lies in ascertaining injury manners. This study aimed to systematically simulate and parameterize 3 types of craniocerebral injury including impact injury, fall injury, and run-over injury, to compare the injury response outcomes of different injury manners. MethodsBased on the total human model for safety (THUMS) and its enhanced human model THUMS-hollow structures, a total of 84 simulations with 3 injury manners, different loading directions, and loading velocities were conducted. Von Mises stress, intracranial pressure, maximum principal strain, cumulative strain damage measure, shear stress, and cranial strain were employed to analyze the injury response of all areas of the brain. To examine the association between injury conditions and injury consequences, correlation analysis, principal component analysis, linear regression, and stepwise linear regression were utilized. ResultsThere is a significant correlation observed between each criterion of skull and brain injury (p < 0.01 in all Pearson correlation analysis results). A 2-phase increase of cranio-cerebral stress and strain as impact speed increases. In high-speed impact (> 40 km/h), the Von Mises stress on the skull was with a high possibility exceed the threshold for skull fracture (100 MPa). When falling and making temporal and occipital contact with the ground, the opposite side of the impacted area experiences higher frequency stress concentration than contact at other conditions. Run-over injuries tend to have a more comprehensive craniocerebral injury, with greater overall deformation due to more adequate kinetic energy conduction. The mean value of maximum principal strain of brain and Von Mises stress of cranium at run-over condition are 1.39 and 403.8 MPa, while they were 1.31, 94.11 MPa and 0.64, 120.5 MPa for the impact and fall conditions, respectively. The impact velocity also plays a significant role in craniocerebral injury in impact and fall loading conditions (the p of all F-test < 0.05). A regression equation of the craniocerebral injury manners in pedestrian accidents was established. ConclusionThe study distinguished the craniocerebral injuries caused in different manners, elucidated the biomechanical mechanisms of craniocerebral injury, and provided a biomechanical foundation for the identification of craniocerebral injury in legal contexts.