Crashes often occur at intersections because these are the locations where two or more roads cross each other and activities such as turning left, crossing over, and turning right have the potential for conflicts resulting in crashes. In order to understand the crash scenarios at intersections, this study examines general characteristics of motor vehicle traffic crashes at intersections by analyzing the association of the critical reason with several crash factors such as driver’s sex and age, traffic control device, critical pre-crash event, and atmospheric condition. The National Motor Vehicle Crash Causation Survey data collected at crash scenes between 2005 and 2007 is used in statistical analyses such as descriptive analysis, generalized logit model, and configural frequency analysis. Descriptive statistics are first used to highlight characteristics of the intersection-related crashes. The results from this analysis provide guidelines for in-depth analysis. Close associations of crash factors with critical reasons of an event that made the crash imminent are revealed through the analysis of generalized logit model. Subsequently, the configural frequency analysis is used to identify patterns of driver-attributed critical reasons in the intersection-related crashes in terms of crash factors such as traffic control devices, pre-crash event, and driver’s age and sex. Many interesting findings are obtained in this study. For example, crash occurrence may be attributed to illegal maneuver or inattention while crossing over at intersections controlled by traffic signals or stop signs. For both male and female drivers 55 and older, crash occurrence may be attributed to misjudgment of gap or other’s speed and inadequate surveillance. Male drivers of all ages are likely to be involved in intersection-related crashes due to illegal maneuver or driving aggressively or too fast for conditions. (Author/publisher)
Samenvatting