Road Traffic Deaths Research Articles

Analysis for estimating economic loss due to deaths in road traffic accidents

Background: Injuries and Death that had occurred due to road traffic accidents cannot measure the economic loss, but also affects the physical and mental challenges of the whole family. The aim of this study is to determine the economic burden due to road traffic deaths in hilly areas of two major districts of Uttarakhand. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted to determine the impact of deaths due to road traffic accidents for which secondary data was collected after written consent from the Traffic Police Department records in Dehradun and Haridwar. Primary data was collected from the attendants of deceased through pre-designed structured questionnaire along with informed consent. Significance & scope of the study: The economic loss due to road traffic accidents (RTA) is not measurable. Few studies claimed to assess the economic burden due to road traffic accidents in the last two decades. No database was available from hilly terrain in Uttarakhand. Hence the scope was a major criterion for this type of study. Research Findings: The present study estimated that the road traffic death rate was found to be significantly affective the GDP of the deceased family in comparison with state to that of country.

An investigation on the safety of children on the roads of Gaza, Palestine

The traffic safety system in Palestine needs major improvements. Traffic accident data in Gaza Strip are collected from crash reports recorded by the local Police. In many cases, roads are constructed without proper consideration of children’s needs. However, children and young kids use the roads as pedestrians, bicyclists, and occupants of vehicles. Moreover, they might choose to play on the road. This paper aims to investigate the situation of traffic safety of children in the Gaza Strip and to recommend measures to reduce their risk. This research is based on accident statistics recorded in the period between 2008 and 2018. Analysis was carried out to determine critical locations that have a high number of accidents, focusing on accidents that resulted in casualties and fatalities of children. Results show that the highest rate of children fatalities in the Gaza Strip was on Arterial Roads. According to the data collected in 2016, 2017, and 2018, the percentage of road traffic deaths of children are 60%, 68% and 59% respectively, which is higher than the average rate of child mortality in the world (52%) according to the world organization statistics. Gaza city has the largest number of children fatalities caused by road accidents in the Gaza Strip. This might be due to the high population density and heavy traffic. In order to reduce road accidents for children, it is necessary to control the speed of vehicles at school zones and to provide more safety measures for children on the roads, including illuminated pedestrian crossings for children. It is very important to provide children at schools and kindergartens with proper training on how to cross the street. It is also helpful to teach them some important traffic signs.

Using nomophobia severity to predict illegal smartphone use while driving

The fear of being without a mobile phone has emerged as a global psycho-social phenomenon impacting smartphone users and their behaviour. Determining whether higher levels of nomophobia are associated with an increased likelihood of illegal smartphone use in vehicles may provide driver licencing authorities with avenues to reduce risk by developing programs and training aimed at mitigating nomophobia. This study builds upon a previous analysis that revealed only one of nomophobia's four factors—the fear of being without access to information—predicted the likelihood of illegal smartphone use while driving. By measuring total nomophobia scores in terms of severity, not factors, this study identified a stronger relationship than previously thought between driver's illegal smartphone use and the fear of being without a mobile phone. Indeed, using a sample of 2773 Australian smartphone users from the state of Victoria, individuals with ‘severe’ nomophobia were 85% more likely to engage in illegal use while driving. In other words, the odds of engaging in illegal smartphone use among those with severe nomophobia increased by a factor of 6.6. Given the global prevalence of severe nomophobia is over 20%, these findings become significant for road users around the world, especially in low to middle income countries where 90% of road traffic deaths occur. Developing educational and/or behavioural programs reducing nomophobia may reduce road traffic deaths.

Mortality due to road traffic injuries in older adults in the Republic of Ecuador between 1990 and 2018: a descriptive study

Mortality due to road traffic injuries in older adults in the Republic of Ecuador between 1990 and 2018: a descriptive study

Ride-Hailing and Road Traffic Crashes: A Critical Review.

Ride-hailing businesses, including Uber and Lyft, have reshaped road traffic since they first began operating in the United States approximately a decade ago. It follows that ride-hailing may also alter the incidence and distribution of road traffic crash injuries and deaths. The available evidence relating ride-hailing to crashes is critically reviewed in this article. We present a theoretical model that synthesizes the hypothesized mechanisms, and we identify common methodological challenges and suggest priorities for future research. Mixed results have been reported for the overall incidence of road traffic crash injuries and deaths, likely due to heterogeneous impacts on vehicular traffic flow (e.g., increasing the volume of vehicles); on vehicle-, person-, and event-level characteristics (e.g., reducing alcohol-impaired driver crashes); on road-user types (e.g., increasing pedestrian crashes); and on environmental conditions (e.g., reducing crashes most substantially where public transit access is poorest). The lack of a well-developed theory of human mobility and methodological challenges that are common to many ecological studies impede exploration of these sources of moderation. Innovative solutions are required to explicate ride-hailing's heterogeneous impacts, to guide policy that can take advantage of the public health benefits of ride-hailing, and to ensure that research keeps pace with technological advances that continue to reshape road traffic use.

Survey Based Road Safety Analysis to Understand the Perspective of the General Public

The number of road traffic deaths continues to climb, reaching 1.35 million deaths globally in 2016 and road traffic injury is now the leading cause of death for children and young adults aged 5–29 years (WHO, 2018). Road safety is officially recognized as a global safety issue and it is also included in the Sustainable Development Goals. This is a questionnaire based analysis, which aims to understand the outlook of the general public regarding the current road safety system and to understand the level of awareness regarding the same. It also aims to compare the perspective of drivers and non-drivers towards traffic rules. Majority of the participants were from the age group of 15-30 years as they are most directly affected by road accidents. Our objective is to understand the shortcomings in the current road safety system through the perspective of the general public, which can then help in implementing a more efficient system in order to decrease the number of road accidents. Inadequate traffic system also significantly affects the economic growth of the region. According to the World Road Statistics, 2018, India ranks 1st in the number of road accident deaths hence there is an urgent need to understand the root cause for such a high number of accidents and to find solutions for this issue. Our results show that there is a need to implement stricter rules for road safety and this perspective of the general public is not affected by the status of the individual (driver, non-driver). It also suggests the need for increasing the level of licence tests conducted. Increasing awareness at an early stage among the people regarding the seriousness of following traffic rules can help prevent road accidents at the baseline level

Comparing estimates of road traffic deaths and non-fatal road traffic injuries in Cambodia

IntroductionTimely, accurate and detailed information about traffic injuries are essential for managing national road safety programmes. However, there is considerable under-reporting in official statistics of many low and middle-income countries...

New Deal in Road Safety: Why we need NGOs

Road safety has been receiving increasing global attention, for example: the inclusion of road safety in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adoption of resolution 74/299 “Improving global road safety”; Stockholm Declaration (2020) reflecting the recommendations of the Academic Expert Group of the 3rd Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety. Recognising that the target to reduce road deaths and serious injuries by 50% was not met in the First Decade of Action for Road Safety (Decade of Action) 2011–2020, the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development made a pledge in September 2019 to make the new decade one of action and delivery. On 28 October 2021, the Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021–2030 (the Global Plan) was launched to guide Member States in the implementation of key actions to improve road safety with the target to reduce road traffic deaths and injuries by at least 50% by 2030 (WHO & UN Regional Commissions, 2021). The Global Plan calls on governmental agencies as the primary responsibility holder in delivering a safe road transport system and implementing the required road safety actions to achieve the global target of 50% reduction in deaths and injuries by 2030. The Global Plan also calls on other actors — nongovernment organisations (NGOs), academia, youth, funders, private sector and UN agencies — as important contributors. NGOs are groups organised independently from governments at a local, national or international level to serve a certain cause such as road safety. NGOs exist to drive actions and bring improvements on a societal issue, and, in the field of road safety, NGOs drive road safety actions to protect people from being killed or seriously injured in our ubiquitous use of the road transport system.

Urban landscape and street-design factors associated with road-traffic mortality in Latin America between 2010 and 2016 (SALURBAL): an ecological study

SummaryBackgroundRoad-traffic injuries are a key cause of death and disability in low-income and middle-income countries, but the effect of city characteristics on road-traffic mortality is unknown in these countries. The aim of this study was to determine associations between city-level built environment factors and road-traffic mortality in large Latin American cities.MethodsWe selected cities from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Panama, and Peru; cities included in the analysis had a population of at least 100 000 people. We extracted data for road-traffic deaths that occurred between 2010 and 2016 from country vital registries. Deaths were grouped by 5-year age groups and sex. Road-traffic deaths were identified using ICD-10 codes, with adjustments for ill-defined codes and incomplete registration. City-level measures included population, urban development, street design, public transportation, and social environment. Associations were estimated using multilevel negative binomial models with robust variances.Findings366 cities were included in the analysis. There were 328 408 road-traffic deaths in nearly 3·5 billion person-years across all countries, with an average crude rate of 17·1 deaths per 100 000 person-years. Nearly half of the people who died were younger than 35 years. In multivariable models, road-traffic mortality was higher in cities where urban development was more isolated (rate ratio [RR] 1·05 per 1 SD increase, 95% CI 1·02–1·09), but lower in cities with higher population density (0·94, 0·90–0·98), higher gross domestic product per capita (0·96, 0·94–0·98), and higher intersection density (0·92, 0·89–0·95). Cities with mass transit had lower road mortality rates than did those without (0·92, 0·86–0·99).InterpretationUrban development policies that reduce isolated and disconnected urban development and that promote walkable street networks and public transport could be important strategies to reduce road-traffic deaths in Latin America and elsewhere.FundingWellcome Trust.

Survey Based Road Safety Analysis to Understand the Perspective of the General Public

The number of road traffic deaths continues to climb, reaching 1.35 million deaths globally in 2016 and road traffic injury is now the leading cause of death for children and young adults aged 5–29 years (WHO, 2018). Road safety is officially recognized as a global safety issue and it is also included in the Sustainable Development Goals. This is a questionnaire based analysis, which aims to understand the outlook of the general public regarding the current road safety system and to understand the level of awareness regarding the same. It also aims to compare the perspective of drivers and non-drivers towards traffic rules. Majority of the participants were from the age group of 15-30 years as they are most directly affected by road accidents. Our objective is to understand the shortcomings in the current road safety system through the perspective of the general public, which can then help in implementing a more efficient system in order to decrease the number of road accidents. Inadequate traffic system also significantly affects the economic growth of the region. According to the World Road Statistics, 2018, India ranks 1st in the number of road accident deaths hence there is an urgent need to understand the root cause for such a high number of accidents and to find solutions for this issue. Our results show that there is a need to implement stricter rules for road safety and this perspective of the general public is not affected by the status of the individual (driver, non-driver). It also suggests the need for increasing the level of licence tests conducted. Increasing awareness at an early stage among the people regarding the seriousness of following traffic rules can help prevent road accidents at the baseline level.

Motorized 2\u20133 wheelers death rates over a decade: a global study

BackgroundMotorized 2–3-wheelers-related death is high due to the exposed body of the driver/passenger and the high speed. The United Nation (UN) Decade of Action for road safety aimed to reduce road traffic deaths by 50% by the year 2020. We aimed to study the factors affecting the death rates of motorized 2–3 wheelers injured victims and whether the reduction in the death rates has met the UN target.MethodsData were retrieved from the WHO Global Status Reports on Road Safety published over 2009 to 2018 which covered the years of 2007 to 2016. Studied variables included motorized 2–3 wheelers death rates, percentage of helmet-wearing rate, helmet law enforcement, speed law enforcement, gross national income per capita, vehicles/person ratio, and motorized 2–3 wheelers/person ratio. A mixed linear model was used to define factors affecting the change of motorized 2–3 wheelers death rates over time.ResultsThe global mean motorized 2–3 wheelers death rates increased from 2.37/100,000 population to 3.23/100,000 population over the studied decade (a relative ratio of 1.36) which was not statistically significant. Factors that affected mortality included GNI (p = 0.025), motorized 2–3 wheelers per person ratio (p < 0.0001), percentage of helmet wearing rate (p = 0.046), and the interaction between vehicle/person ratio and motorized 2–3 wheelers/person ratio (p = 0.016). There was a significant increase in the death rates over time in the low-income countries (a relative ratio of 2.52, p = 0.019, Friedman test), and middle-income countries (a relative ratio of 1.46, p < 0.0001, Friedman test), compared with a significant decrease in the high-income countries (a relative ratio of 0.72, p < 0.0001, Friedman test).ConclusionsGlobal mortality of motorized 2–3 wheelers has increased by a relative ratio of 1.36 over a recent decade. The UN target of reducing death was not met. The increase was related to the increase in motorized 2–3 wheelers per person ratio and economic inequity which has to be addressed globally. The economic global gap significantly impacts the mortality rates of motorized 2–3 wheelers.

Interventions to reduce pedestrian road traffic injuries: A systematic review of randomized controlled trials, cluster randomized controlled trials, interrupted time-series, and controlled before-after studies.

BackgroundRoad traffic injuries are among the top ten causes of death globally, with the highest burden in low and middle-income countries, where over a third of deaths occur among pedestrians and cyclists. Several interventions to mitigate the burden among pedestrians have been widely implemented, however, the effectiveness has not been systematically examined.ObjectivesTo assess the effectiveness of interventions to reduce road traffic crashes, injuries, hospitalizations and deaths among pedestrians.MethodsWe considered studies that evaluated interventions to reduce road traffic crashes, injuries, hospitalizations and/or deaths among pedestrians. We considered randomized controlled trials, interrupted time-series studies, and controlled before-after studies. We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, Web of Science, WHO Global Health Index, Health Evidence, Transport Research International Documentation and ClinicalTrials.gov through 31 August 2020, and the reference lists of all included studies. Two reviewers independently screened titles and abstracts and full texts, extracted data and assessed the risk of bias. We summarized findings narratively with text and tables.ResultsA total of 69123 unique records were identified through the searches, with 26 of these meeting our eligibility criteria. All except two of these were conducted in high-income countries and most were from urban settings. The majority of studies observed either a clear effect favoring the intervention or an unclear effect potentially favoring the intervention and these included: changes to the road environment (19/27); changes to legislation and enforcement (12/12); and road user behavior/education combined with either changes to the road environment (3/3) or with legislation and enforcement (1/1). A small number of studies observed either a null effect or an effect favoring the control.ConclusionsAlthough the highest burden of road traffic injuries exists in LMICs, very few studies have examined the effectiveness of available interventions in these settings. Studies indicate that road environment, legislation and enforcement interventions alone produce positive effects on pedestrian safety. In combination with or with road user behavior/education interventions they are particularly effective in improving pedestrian safety.

Pedestrians' Perception of Pedestrian Bridges-A Qualitative Study in Dar es Salaam.

Background: About 30 percent of all road traffic deaths in Tanzania involve pedestrians. As one of the strategies to protect them, pedestrian overhead bridges have been constructed across busy roads, and plans to build more bridges are in place. It has, however, been shown that such pedestrian bridges do not necessarily discourage street-level road crossing, even when pedestrians must cross multiple lanes with heavy traffic. This paper explores the perceptions of pedestrians when crossing urban roads emphasizing pedestrian bridge users. Methods: Nineteen semi-structured interviews were conducted in situ around six pedestrian bridges in Dar es Salaam. All interviews were conducted in Swahili, recorded using digital devices, transcribed verbatim then translated into English. Content analysis was employed using qualitative data analysis software (MAXQDA). Results: We identified three overarching themes, namely, I don’t know if it’s right or wrong, they already decided; the bridge is just a crossing facility, not for other purposes; and follow your gut feeling, even if you don’t know how things will end. The results suggest that many participants prefer to look for alternative means of transport and resorted to more alternative routes just to avoid using pedestrian bridges due to bridges length and crossing time. Conclusion: These findings highlight the concerns caused by alternative uses of pedestrian bridges and underscore the importance of involving local communities and other stakeholders during planning.

Effects of Vehicle Safety Design and Motorcycle Helmets on Road Traffic Deaths, Injuries,And Public Health Burden in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations

Effects of Vehicle Safety Design and Motorcycle Helmets on Road Traffic Deaths, Injuries,And Public Health Burden in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations

Дорожньо-транспортний травматизм і смертність в умовах воєнної загрози суверенітету і територіальній цілісності України

The period of martial law certainly has an impact on the road transport sector, as an important integral part of themechanism of modern movement. This article attempts to analyze the situation with road safety, namely mortality andinjuries from road accidents before and during the large-scale armed aggression of the Russian Federation againstUkraine. Attention is drawn to the achievement of zero statistics on road deaths and the role of the National Police inthis. The decision on regulation of road safety at the regional level during wartime is considered. The introduced seizureof vehicles in a certain category of offending drivers is seen as an impetus to counter legal nihilism on the roads, whichin martial law has become almost a justification for road accidents.It is stated that in order to change the situation in thefield of road safety, namely to significantly reduce road traffic injuries and deaths, it will be necessary to review the roleand nature of the National Police in the prevention of accident

Road traffic injuries and deaths and the achievement of UN Sustainable Development Goals in Brazil: results from the Global Burden of Disease Study, 1990 to 2019.

INTRODUCTION: Brazil ranks 5th in the number of deaths due to road injuries. This study aimed to analyze mortality and disabilities resulting from road injuries in Brazil, and to assess the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) target of reducing deaths due to road injuries by 50% by 2030. METHODS: This descriptive and exploratory study used the estimates from the Global Burden of Disease 2019: indicators of mortality, premature deaths, and disabilities according to sex, age group, and type of transport for 1990, 2015, and 2019. Time trends in mortality rates from 1990 to 2019 were assessed, and a projection for 2030 was calculated, applying a linear regression model. RESULTS: Deaths due to road injuries were 44,236 in 1990, and 44,529 in 2019, representing a 43% reduction in mortality rates. The highest rates were in the North, Northeast, and Midwest regions of Brazil, in males and young adults. A 77% reduction was observed in mortality rates for pedestrians and an increase of 53% for motorcyclists and of 54% for cyclists during the period. In terms of motorcycle road injuries, the mortality rate for men increased from 7.3/100,000 (1990) to 11.7/100,000 inhabitants (2019). The rates of premature deaths and disabilities were also higher for men when compared to women. Amputations, fractures, spinal cord injuries, and head trauma were the main types of road injuries. The projections for 2030 show that Brazil might not reach the SDG target. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the decline in mortality rates, the 2030 Agenda’s target might not be achieved.

Fusion of BIFFOA and Adaptive Two-Phase Mutation for Helmetless Motorcyclist Detection

Road traffic injuries and deaths cause considerable economic losses to individuals, families, and nations as a whole. One of the strategies needed to curtail these fatalities is the surveillance of helmetless motorcyclists, which is carried out by developing an automatic detection system based on computer vision. Generally, this system consists of three subsystems, namely, moving object segmentation, motorcycle classification, and helmetless head detection. HOPG-LDB (Histogram of Oriented Phase and Gradient - Local Difference Binary) descriptor for this system produced good accuracy; however, it still has a drawback related to a large number of features. Based on these observations, this paper proposed an Adaptive Two-phase Mutation Binary Improved Fruit Fly Optimization Algorithm (ATMBIFFOA) to reduce the features. The ATMBIFFOA is a new feature selection algorithm that improved BIFFOA (Binary Improved Fruit Fly Optimization Algorithm) with an adaptive two-phase mutation algorithm. The BIFFOA produced good accuracy; however, weak in reducing feature dimension. The adaptive two-phase mutation algorithm was used to cover this weakness. The experiment results show that the proposed method can reduce the number of features and computation time effectively from BIFFOA. The proposed method produced motorcycle classification accuracy of 96.06% for the JSC1 dataset and 96.85% for the JSC2 dataset. As for helmetless head detection, the proposed method produced an average precision of 66.29% for the JSC1 dataset and 63.95% for the JSC2 dataset.

Analysis of deaths and injuries related to road traffic crashes in al-najaf governorate of iraq from 2017 to 2019.

This study aimed to determine the rates of road traffic injuries and deaths as well as the factors affecting their levels in the Al-Najaf governorate for 3 years (2017-2019). Data were collected and analysed from the annual report of traffic crashes statistics of the Iraqi Ministry of Planning/Central Statistical Organisation. Al-Najaf governorate was selected as the study model for the period between 2017 and 2019. This selection was based on its urban growth, important location and standing for religious tourism. Of the 8824, 9852 and 10,753 crashes reported in Iraq in 2017, 2018, and 2019, Al-Najaf governorate recorded 1057 (12%), 1041 (10.6%) and 1148 (10.7%), respectively. The percentage of injuries in Al-Najaf governorate to the total of injuries in Iraq decreased as follows: (11.9%), (10.2%) and (9.9%) for 2017, 2018 and 2019 respectively, while the mortality rate decreased as follows: (8.4%), (7.7%) and (7.1%), respectively. The number of deaths and injuries on main roads and highways was higher. Besides, the rates of injuries and deaths among males were higher than in females. Driving at excessive speed was the most statistically significant factor leading to a high proportion of deaths and injuries. This study showed a decrease in the deaths and injuries caused by road traffic crashes during the 3 years 2017-2019 in the Al-Najaf Governorate, Iraq. It seems that driving rules and regulations need to be revised so that they can have more deterrent power in preventing injuries and deaths from driving accidents.

A record based study of death due to road traffic accident brought for postmortem examination at Tertiary Care Center Bhavnagar

Road traffic accidents happen to be a leading cause of death among young people and cause considerable economic losses to victims and their families and the nation at large. This is a retrospective autopsy-based study consisting of 120 medico-legal autopsies performed at the mortuary complex of the tertiary care center Bhavnagar during the period from 1st September 2019 to 31st August 2020. Out of the 914 medico-legal autopsies performed during the study period, 120 (13.12%) were due to fatal RTA. There were 103 (85.83%) males and 17 (14.17%) females. 11 to 20 years age group showed the highest number of victims of 24 (20%). The maximum of road traffic deaths of 18 (15%) was shown in March 2020 and a minimum of 2 (1.66%) in April 2020. The highest number of injuries were head injuries of 92 (76.66%), followed by thoracic injury of 30 (25%) and abdominal injury of 21 (17.5%). Road traffic accidents are increasing at an alarming rate in rural and urban areas. Most of them are caused by human errors and they can be prevented by providing road safety education to all. In conclusion, most of the victims of road traffic accidents were young males and the productive age group.

Driving Simulator Study for Evaluating the Effectiveness of Virtual Warnings to Improve the Safety of Interaction Between Cyclists and Vehicles

Globally, cyclists account for 3% of all road traffic deaths, with the highest percentage occurring in Europe (8%) where the bicycle is considered a true alternative mode of transport. Among the causes of crashes are vehicles overtaking cyclists, especially on rural roads. In this study, a new application of augmented reality (AR) warnings for connected vehicles is tested by means of a driving simulator. The overall objective of the study consists in assessing the effectiveness of three proposed AR systems in improving the safety of interactions between vehicles and cyclists, especially during overtaking maneuvers. The AR systems were tested on a sample of 46 drivers and provided them with additional virtual visual information aimed at improving the driver’s risk perception and assessment of safe distance from a cyclist. The virtual warning configurations were: (i) a yellow safety zone around the cyclist; (ii) a color-changing safety zone that changes from red to green when the driver has safe lateral space to overtake the cyclist; (iii) the same color-changing security zone but with an additional acoustic warning. The AR warnings were found to be quite effective as they helped drivers overtake cyclists more safely. With AR warnings (especially with the additional audio), it was found that drivers adopted longer distances from cyclists and entered the oncoming lane less frequently, thus lowering the risk of collision with cyclists as well as the risk of head-on collision with oncoming vehicles.