This report details the traffic accident involvement for different older people sub-groups. Comparisons were made between transport modes, demographic subgroups and accident locations both within and between countries. Data from five countries are analysed within this report: Great Britain, Denmark, the Czech Republic, France and Spain. Throughout the analysis older people casualties have been split into three age categories (65-69, 70-79 and 80+). Differences in population size, modal choice and distance travelled produce variations in the casualty figures of different countries. The direct comparison of severity ratios between countries is difficult due to differences in the severity definitions and changes to these definitions over time. However, some high-level trends were identified. The decrease in killed and seriously injured (KSI) casualties in all five countries between 1994 and 2010 indicate encouraging road safety improvements. This improvement was also found in KSI rates per million population in four of the five partner countries. Severity ratios are highest for road users aged over 80 years; this illustrates their physical frailty and greater propensity for serious injury when involved in a road accident. Road safety interventions should focus particularly on injury reduction mechanisms for this at-risk group. The analyses of casualty proportions by road user type showed that the highest proportions of older casualties arise from driving a car, being a car passenger or a pedestrian. Cyclist casualties formed a sizeable proportion of the overall casualties in Denmark and the Czech Republic, whereas a comparatively large proportion of casualties were recorded as bus or coach passengers in Great Britain. Analyses of casualty rates for Great Britain and Denmark split by transport mode showed that individuals aged 70+ travel the least kilometres per year using the transport modes ‘walking’ and ‘bicycle’; however these individuals have the highest KSI casualty rate for these two transport modes. Similar analyses are required for other countries to inform conclusions on the relative risk of different transport modes for older road users. Given that the fastest growing population group in many countries is those aged 80+, travel surveys should be adjusted in such a way that finer differentiation between older road users are possible (e.g. 65- 69, 70-79 and 80+). This would permit the comparison of the relative risk per kilometre travelled using a particular mode for all countries, an analysis which currently could only be performed for Great Britain and Denmark. (Author/publisher)
Samenvatting