Studies of age differences in motion perception abilities and accident involvement patterns are reviewed to predict the exaggerated difficulty for older drivers with specific traffic maneuvers and theexpected ordering of older-driver accident involvement rates by type of maneuver. A rigorous analysis of police-reported accidents in michigan and pennsylvania used induced exposure methods to demonstrate the highest older-driver accident involvement rate for turning left against oncoming traffic; the next highest older-driver accident rate occurred when drivers were crossing or turning into a traffic stream, although the extent of overinvolvement was not as high as the first situation; and the lowest relative involvement rates for maneuvers in which an age-related motion perception deficit may be at issue were in situations in which vehicle headways are critical, such as overtaking. Mitigating factors such as older drivers' slower driving that may compensate for or minimize some of the problems found inlaboratory tests are noted. Overall, the present review and analysis supports an interpretation that age differences in motion perception in critical traffic situations is an important factor in older drivers' overinvolvement in particular accident types. This paper appears in transportation research record no. 1325, Highway safety: older drivers, seat belts, alcohol, motorcycles, and pedestrians 1991
Abstract