title: The impact of driver age on lost life years for other road users in France: A population based study of crash-involved road users.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  One of the concerns in road safety is the threat older drivers may pose to other road users. Using the rate of lost life years, the present study provides a public health approach to quantify this potential threat.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 1570686 motorised vehicle drivers or motorcycle riders and 652246 non-drivers, i.e. vehicle passengers, pedestrians and cyclists involved in injury crashes in France between 1996 and 2004, were included in a population based cross-sectional study. Fatality rates and rate of lost life years for each crash-involved driver age class were calculated for the drivers themselves and for other road users.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The study has shown a significant reduction in the rate of lost life years for crash-involved other road users (whether passengers, pedestrians, cyclists or opposing drivers) as driver age increases. Other road users lost half as many years of life when involved in crashes with drivers aged over 85 than with drivers under 65 (1.26 and 2.32 per 100 expected remaining life years, respectively).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our findings suggest that among road users involved in injury crashes, older drivers are less dangerous for the other road users. By attributing other road users' lost life years to each driver age, this study represents a new contribution to the debate about ageing and road safety.
authors.affiliation: Transportation, Occupational and Environmental Epidemiology Research and Surveillance Unit (UMRESTTE), Joint Unit of the University of Lyon (University Lyon 1), Lyon, F-69008, France. sylviane.lafont@inrets.fr
authors.forename: Sylviane
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lafont
authors.forename: Emmanuelle
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Amoros
authors.forename: Blandine
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Gadegbeku
authors.forename: Mireille
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Chiron
authors.forename: Bernard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Laumon
mesh_terms: D000063:Accidents, Traffic / Q000401:mortality*; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001076:Aptitude; D001334:Automobile Driving / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D005602:France / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000401:mortality*