Abstract

In industrialized countries people over 50 years of age represent a rapidly growing part of population. Their lifestyle is also becoming more active, which means that the percentage of older drivers in the population of all drivers is also increasing. Many different studies have shown that elderly drivers are more frequently involved in specific types of accidents, especially at intersections. In the past 15 years there was a trend of increasing popularity of roundabouts in Slovenia. Their introduction was generally supported by the arguments of increased traffic-flow capacity and traffic safety as well. The studies on which these arguments are based were performed with an “ideal” type of driver in mind the one that fully understands new rules and reacts correctly in all situations that may occur at such intersections, where there are no light signals to guide them. An elderly person does not necessarily conform to that ideal and if the percentage of elderly drivers became significant, the premises of the above mentioned studies may not be correct anymore which in turn implies that their results could also be questioned. The present study concentrated on the evaluation of traffic safety of elderly drivers, at various types of intersection, from their own perspective. Various statistical analyses of obtained data were performed. The most important finding was that we may claim, with high degree of probability, that the average person of the age of over 60 feels more unsafe at double-lane roundabouts than they would feel had the same intersection been equipped with traffic lights. Elderly traffic participants will always cause more accidents or participate in them due to hazardous factors. Challenge, arising from many different studies and researches, is in studying what measures and solutions can reduce the risk for elderly participants. Veliko število študij kaže, da se starost prebivalstva povečuje. To velja tudi za Evropsko unijo, hkrati pa tudi za Slovenijo. Statistične analize kažejo, da se v državah Evropske unije življenjska doba prebivalstva letno povišuje. V Sloveniji je 21,6% populacije starejše od 60 let. Dejstvo je, da je večina teh ljudi udeležencev v prometu, predvsem v cestnem prometu. Članek prikazuje rezultate študije, katere osnovni namen je bil analiza dejanske varnosti starejših udeležencev v cestnem prometu v Sloveniji. Raziskava je imela dva osnovna cilja. Prvi cilj je bil ugotoviti, ali se starejši udeleženci v obstoječih prometnih razmerah počutijo varne. Drugi cilj je bil usmerjen v ugotavljanje varnosti starejših oseb v različnih tipih nivojskih križišč, kjer so udeleženi v cestnem prometnem dogajanju kot pešci, kolesarji in vozniki. Rezultati anketiranja so pokazali, da se največje število starejših oseb, ne glede na to, ali so to pešci, kolesarji ali vozniki motornega vozila, najbolj varno počuti v semaforiziranih križiščih in najmanj varno v dvopasovnih krožnih križiščih. Starejši udeleženci v prometu bodo zaradi dejavnikov tveganja vedno med tistimi skupinami udeležencev cestnega prometa, ki pogosteje povzročajo nesreče oziroma so v njih udeleženi. Izziv, ki izhaja iz opravljenih študij in raziskav, je povezan predvsem s proučevanjem ukrepov in rešitev, s katerimi lahko vplivamo na zmanjšanje tveganja starejših udeležencev v prometu.

Abstract

In 2003, Australian road transport jurisdictions collectively accepted that the greatest road safety gains would be achieved through adopting a Safe System approach, derived from Sweden's Vision Zero and the Netherlands' Sustainable Safety strategies. A key objective of all three approaches is to manage vehicles, the road infrastructure, speeds, road users and the interactions between these components, to ensure that in the event of crashes, crash energies will remain at levels that minimize the probability of death and serious injury. Older drivers pose a particular challenge to the Safe System approach, given particularly their greater physical frailty, their driving patterns and for some at least, their reduced fitness to drive. This paper has analyzed the so-called ‘older driver problem’ and identified a number of key factors underpinning their crash levels, for which countermeasures can be identified and implemented within a Safe System framework. The recommended countermeasures consist of: (1) safer roads, through a series of design improvements particularly governing urban intersections; (2) safer vehicles, through both the promotion of crashworthiness as a critical consideration when purchasing a vehicle and the wide use of developed and developing ITS technologies; (3) safer speeds especially at intersections; and (4) safer road users, through both improved assessment procedures to identify the minority of older drivers with reduced fitness to drive and educational efforts to encourage safer driving habits particularly but not only through self-regulation. Document type: Article

Abstract

Older drivers are frequently viewed as overly represented in crashes, particularly when crash involvement per distance travelled is considered. This perception has led to a call for tighter licensing conditions for older drivers, a policy which inevitably results in mobility restrictions for at least some drivers. However there is a growing body of research evidence which shows that as a group, older drivers represent no greater road risk than drivers from other age groups once different levels of driving activity are taken into account. This paper has examined aspects of older drivers' fitness to drive based on survey data and off-road and on-road driving performance from a sample of 905 New Zealand older drivers. The results show that policies which target all older drivers and lead to licensing and mobility restrictions cannot be justified from a safety basis. Document type: Article

Abstract

geing is associated with changes in cognitive functions that affect fitness to drive. However, little is known about age effects on traffic sign comprehension (TSC). In this study, we assessed 37 older and 29 younger healthy drivers with a standardised traffic sign test and a comprehensive neuropsychological test battery. Older drivers showed lower TSC speed and tended to interpret more recent traffic signs less accurately than younger drivers. Higher cognitive functioning was generally associated with better TSC performances in both groups. In older drivers, TSC speed was related to specific cognitive functions such as cognitive flexibility and inhibition. Our findings suggest that traffic signs should appear in time to meet age-related constraints in TSC processing speed and should put low demands on inhibitory skills and cognitive flexibility. However, our findings also suggest that cognitive abilities are important for TSC regardless of age. In addition, a periodic update of traffic sign knowledge appears to be necessary. (C) 2019 International Association of Traffic and Safety Sciences. Production and hosting by Elsevier Ltd.

Abstract

Over the past few years the population of older drivers has substantially increased across the United States. Older drivers are a group of special interest because of their potential age-related deficiencies. It is essential to understand their driving behavior and adjust the conditions of roadway systems according to their requirements. Likewise, driving behavior of older drivers needs to be considered in order to adequately estimate capacities at intersections. In the past few years, research projects were performed by the University of South Florida to analyze the differences of driving behavior among different driver age groups. Typically, the driving behavior of older drivers was evaluated by analyzing their start-up lost time and saturation headway at signalized intersections as compared to young and mid-age driver groups. Research results were based on data collected from signalized intersections with different land-use types. These intersections are located in west and central Florida where the elderly population has been increasing rapidly in recent years. From the results it was found that the presence of older drivers significantly reduced intersection capacity at all study sites because of their higher lost times and lower saturation flow rates. Therefore, driving behavior of older drivers should be considered in designing intersections located in places with a significant older driver population. In the research, models were developed to predict start-up lost time and saturation headway values generated by older drivers. Then, the variation in capacities with an increasing percentage of older drivers in the traffic stream was modeled. Finally, adjustment factors for different percentages of older drivers were developed to adjust intersection capacity. These factors are believed to account for the presence of older drivers in the traffic stream. The adjustment factors may be used in capacity analysis and design procedures for intersections with a significant older driver population. Document type: Article

Abstract

Performance of Two-way Stop-controlled (TWSC) intersections is greatly affected by the gap acceptance capabilities of drivers. However, there have been no detailed studies conducted regarding driver age differences in gap acceptance capabilities under different light conditions. Therefore, this study was conducted to fill the lack of information in that area, by considering three driver age groups (old, middle, and young), two maneuvers (left-turn, and through), and two light conditions (daytime, and nighttime). Field observations were made at several TWSC intersections and data were collected at these sites regarding available and accepted gaps on the major street and age group of minor street drivers, both during daytime and nighttime. Statistical analysis conducted in this study with a 5% level of significance revealed that there were significant differences in gap acceptance capabilities among the three driver age groups under both light conditions. Only older drivers indicated statistically different gap acceptance capabilities depending on the light condition, where they illustrated longer critical gap values during nighttime. Document type: Article