This study analyses and compares child pedestrian road crashes within the Israeli Arab minority and within the general population of Jordan. In both communities children are exposed to high level of pedestrian crash risks. The objectives of this study are firstly to identify both common and contrasting pedestrian road crash characteristics between the two communities: the Israeli Arab minority and the general population in Jordan; secondly, to demonstrate the relationship between the exposure to traffic and pedestrian road crash risks, thirdly, to examine the relationship between the demographic and socioeconomic characteristics related to the risk of pedestrian road crash involvement. The methodology of this study is based on descriptive statistics comparing the Jordanian and Israeli Arab pedestrian road crashes using data collected from various resources in Israel and Jordan: the Central Bureaus of Statistics, police files and a household survey which includes trip diaries. The comparison between Israel and Jordan includes many variables including: road accident rate and severity, accident causes, road and traffic conditions at the accident location, driver age, gender and experience. Additionally, the socioeconomic characteristics and daily activity patterns of the drivers and pedestrians involved in traffic accidents were analysed. At the last stage, based upon the diary, a risk index was developed for evaluating the risk of being injured in pedestrian road crashes per walking time and per number of trips. The results of the study show that there is some similarity among the various characteristics of pedestrian road crashes within the two communities, such as age group, gender, day of week, time of day, speed and pedestrian behaviour. Nevertheless, the road safety situation in Jordan is more severe than among Israeli Arabs. Additionally, the findings indicate that despite the fact that the Arab children in Israel take more trips by foot and walk longer than their Jordanian counterparts; the Jordanian children are at higher risk of being injured in pedestrian road crashes. In summation, pedestrian road safety is of major concern in Jordan and within the Israeli Arab minority, and a great deal of effort is needed to effect an enhanced traffic safety situation in both countries. (Author/publisher)
Abstract