title: Safety impacts due to the incompatibility of SUVs, minivans, and pickup trucks in two-vehicle collisions.
abstract: This research sets out to estimate the effects of vehicle incompatibility on the risk of death or major injury to drivers involved in two-vehicle collisions. Based on data for 2,999,395 drivers, logistic regression was used to model the risk of driver death or major injury (defined has being hospitalized). Our analyses show that pickup trucks, minivans and sport utility vehicles (SUVs) are more aggressive than cars for the driver of the other vehicle and more protective for their own drivers. The effect of the pickups is more pronounced in terms of aggressivity. The point estimates are comparable to those in the Toy and Hammitt study [Toy, E.L., Hammitt, J.K., 2003. Safety impacts of SUVs, minivans, and pickup trucks in two-vehicle crashes. Risk Analysis 23, 641-650], but, in contrast to that study, we are now able to establish that a greater number of these effects are statistically significant with a larger sample size. Like vehicle mass and type, other characteristics of drivers and the circumstances of the collision influence the driver's condition after impact. Male drivers, older drivers, drivers who are not wearing safety belts, collisions occurring in a higher speed zone and head-on collisions significantly increase the risk of death. Except for the driver's sex, all of these categories are also associated with an increased risk of death or of being hospitalized after being involved in a two-vehicle collision. For this risk, a significant increase is associated with female drivers.
authors.affiliation: HEC Montreal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3T 2A7. marc.fredette@hec.ca
authors.forename: Marc
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fredette
authors.forename: Lema Sikoti
authors.initials: LS
authors.lastname: Mambu
authors.forename: Aline
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Chouinard
authors.forename: François
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Bellavance
mesh_terms: D000063:Accidents, Traffic / Q000401:mortality*; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001334:Automobile Driving; D001336:Automobiles / Q000145:classification; D002170:Canada / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018986:Motor Vehicles / Q000145:classification*; D011482:Protective Devices / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012307:Risk Factors; D012737:Sex Factors; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D055815:Young Adult