This paper describes New Zealand road-user demographic trends over the past decade, identifies distinct road-user groups on the basis of their patterns of road use, and characterises the risk perceptions and driving behaviours of those road-user groups. The characteristics of gender, age and area of residence (urban, secondary urban, and rural) are the demographic factors that most clearly differentiate New Zealand drivers and the risk perceptions of these groups are significantly different. Rural drivers, women drivers, and older drivers rated a range of driving situations as having greater risk than did other drivers. Men showed the greatest willingness to accept the risk in driving situations and rated their own driving skill higher than did other drivers. In an attitudinal survey of driving behaviour, male drivers' rates of violations and aggressive violations were significantly higher than those of women drivers, with young men reporting the highest rates. (a).
Abstract