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The analysis presented here updates and expands previous research in which rollover critical events were classified based on a detailed review of about 500 police-reported single-vehicle rollover crashes of ESC-equipped vehicles. In order to compare the rollover performance of vehicles with and without ESC for the present study, an additional sample of 150 police reports on non-ESC passenger cars and 196 police reports on light vehicles with ESC in single-vehicle rollovers were obtained, and detailed coding of rollover scenarios was performed. The coding effort was undertaken by an engineering team and focused on critical events leading to rollovers (departure from road, loss of directional control, impact with an object, and departure from road with possible driver's input); driver factors (alcohol/drug involvement, speeding, inattention, distraction, fatigue, and overcorrection); and environmental factors.

India is facing the challenge of reducing road accident fatalities, which claim close to 100,000 lives every year. Road infrastructure is slowly improving, but the number of vehicles on the road is rising fast and so is the number of road accidents, which continue to increase year after year. The data collected by law enforcement agencies is not detailed enough to identify causes and develop solutions. Traffic accidents need to be investigated in detail to include specifics concerning crash location, vehicle damage and injuries sustained by road users. The development of such a detailed database requires the co-operation of a number of government and private organizations associated with road traffic collisions. The foundation for data collection activities is a road traffic accident notification network that enables access to accident details, crashed vehicles, and injury reports in a timely manner.

With the support and cooperation of the Kanchipuram district police and Tamil Nadu police, researchers conducted detailed investigations of accidents occurring on the National Highway 45 over a 60 km stretch. The primary objective was to collect and analyze India-based traffic crash data to begin to create a sound basis for decision making for improving safety on India's roadways. A secondary objective was to establish a standardized methodology using economical tools for collecting and analyzing crash data, specific to Indian roads. For the 45 day study period, an accident intimation network was established between researchers and all police stations/highway patrols in the study area. On occurrence of an accident, police called a 24-hour contact number and researchers responded to the scene. On site, researchers used standardized reporting forms, methodologies, and equipment to perform accident scene examinations, accident vehicle examination, and AIS injury coding.

NASS/CDS data (1993-2013) was used to examine serious injury rates and injury sources for belted drivers in near- and far-side impacts. Frequency and severity of near- and far-side impacts by crash severity (delta-V) were compared for older (1994-2007 MY) and newer (2008-2013 MY) vehicles. For 2008-2013 MY, individual cases were examined for serious thorax injury in far-side impacts. Results show that, for newer passenger cars, about 92% of side impacts have a delta-V under 15 mph and, for older cars, the percentage is about 86%. The rate of serious injury is higher for nearside compared to far-side crashes for both older and newer models, and the near-side injury rate is much lower for newer models. Safety features, including side airbags, are effective in reducing injuries to near-side belted drivers in newer models. The serious injury rate for near-side belted drivers in older cars is 5.5% for near-side crashes and 1.2% for far-side crashes.

Field data is used to evaluate the number of light vehicle occupants injured or killed in side underride crashes with “combination trucks”. Statistical analyses were performed of federal crash data files for side underride crashes with passenger compartment intrusion (PCI) in the light vehicle, and an in-depth review of combination truck crashes was performed using photographs, scene diagrams, and other vehicle and occupant data. Results show that, annually, fewer than 4% of all occupant fatalities and approximately 5.5% of all occupant injuries sustained in light vehicles that have collided with combination trucks can be attributed to side impact underride with PCI.

Using NHTSA field performance data, this study assesses rollover injury risk to restrained and unrestrained occupants by number of quarter turns and nature of injury. The study found that over 80% of light vehicle rollovers involve one to four quarter turns, and less than 3% involve 9 or more quarter turns. The injury risk for belted non-ejected occupants in rollovers with more than five quarter turns is 2-3 times the injury risk in rollovers with less than five quarter turns. Injury risk to belted non-ejected occupants is lower compared to unbelted. Light truck occupants sustain lower injury rates in rollovers compared to car occupants. The paper also addresses some of the limitations of using NHTSA field performance data.

Various factors were evaluated to determine their influence on the odds of front seat occupants receiving either fatal or serious/fatal injuries in single-vehicle rollovers. Factors evaluated included roof strength-to-vehicle weight ratio (as measured in accordance with FMVSS 216), and SAE H61 Effective Headroom. Roof strength-to-weight ratio had no statistically significant effect (p>0.05) on the likelihood of fatality or serious/fatal injury for belted or unbelted drivers. SAE H61 Effective Headroom had no statistically significant effect (p>0.05) on the likelihood of fatal or serious/fatal injury for seat belted drivers in rollovers.

This study examined the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) Death Certificate file to identify frequency and rate of accidental CO poisoning deaths associated with exhaust gases of stationary vehicles in enclosed areas. A comprehensive search was then made to determine whether or not there was an increase in such deaths with the introduction of “smart keys” (available as standard equipment beginning in 2004). For 2000-2011 CY, the CPSC file contained 4,760 death certificate records for ICD-10 code X47 (accidental poisoning by exposure to other gases and vapors). The manual review of narratives for these records covered 2004-2011 and found 1,553 CO poisoning deaths associated with vehicle exhaust, including 748 for enclosed areas. For these 748 incidents, information on victim and location was then identified, and an exhaustive effort was undertaken to determine whether the vehicles involved were equipped with rotary or smart keys.

The Road Accident Sampling System - India (RASSI) accident database being developed by an international consortium of manufacturers and safety researchers is currently India’s only source of in-depth crash data. The database includes information on accident, vehicle, and driver factors associated with each crash, which is collected through on-scene crash investigations conducted by trained crash investigators, from four key sample regions (Coimbatore, Pune, Ahmedabad, and Kolkata). As the RASSI database continues to grow, the next step is to ensure that the sample data can be reliably extrapolated to the whole of India. This paper is an initial attempt to develop national estimates by crash type based on a few sampling locations currently being investigated by the RASSI teams in India. RASSI data was treated as a stratified sample of Indian accidents, and the locations, where the crash data is being collected, were considered as primary sampling units.

As part of a comprehensive plan to reduce the risk of death and serious injury in rollover crashes, NHTSA has proposed upgrading the roof crush resistance standard, FMVSS 216. To evaluate the benefit of this proposal, the agency examined real-world data on injuries and fatalities that would be prevented by the proposed rulemaking. This paper provides a detailed discussion of the statistical and engineering approaches used to derive benefit estimates on fatalities calculated by NHTSA for the proposed upgrade. It concludes the NHTSA estimate of 13-44 lives saved annually is not reliable due to extreme sensitivity of the benefit calculation to the paucity of field data and questionable engineering assumptions.

Pedal misapplication events were examined using police-reported crash data to determine crash characteristics and other contributing factors. The study used police-reported crash data narratives from North Carolina (1994-2009) and included detailed manual review of each selected police report to identify possible pedal misapplication events. A comprehensive keyword search of all the records in the North Carolina data was performed to identify crashes most likely to be associated with pedal misapplications. The identified records were reviewed by engineers and classified as either “Yes,” “Possible,” or “No” pedal misapplication. For the “Yes” and “Possible” records, examination was made of the sequence of events leading up to the possible pedal misapplication. Findings show that the most frequently reported pedal misapplication events include: parking, slowing, stopped, starting, and backing, which are all low-speed events.

India's growing trend of serious road accidents has created an urgent need to understand the primary factors involved in these crashes and in the resulting severe injuries and fatalities. In order to improve the safety of highways and automobiles for all road users, a consortium of safety researchers and vehicle manufacturers has come together to collect first-hand, detailed and consistent crash and injury data for traffic accidents on Indian roads. After three years of pilot studies, a methodology, called Road Accident Sampling System - India (RASSI), has been developed for conducting on-site crash investigations and collecting in-depth accident data on road accidents in India. The processes developed under RASSI to investigate onsite crashes and collect quality accident data suitable for detailed analysis are described. The program includes all types of traffic accidents with injury outcomes.

Analyses were performed using field data for belted drivers of light vehicles in frontal crashes to examine the frequency and severity of frontal crashes with narrow objects. This study examined the distribution of injuries by body region, crash severity, and single- versus multiple-vehicle crashes for narrow object and all other crashes. Factors influencing injuries in different types of frontal crashes were identified, and risk of injury to belted drivers in narrow object crashes versus other frontal crashes was examined. A detailed review of about 400 NASS cases involving narrow object crashes was also performed. Results indicate frontal crashes involving impact with poles, posts, or trees are relatively infrequent. Overall, the fatal risk for belted drivers is lower in narrow object crashes than in other types of frontal crashes.

To determine the relationship between seatback stiffness or strength and the likelihood of serious/fatal injury for drivers and rear seat occupants in rear-impact crashes, analyses were performed using 1995-2006 police-reported crash data from eleven states. Seatback stiffness and strength data was included for 29 different seatback designs used in 40 vehicle models (model years 1995-2006). Results indicate there is no statistically significant relationship between seatback stiffness or strength and the risk of serious/fatal injury in rear-impact crashes. Factors shown to have statistically significant effect on the likelihood of serious/fatal injury in rear-impact collisions include occupant age, gender, and alcohol impairment; vehicle type; and vehicle mass ratio.

Research was undertaken to determine the effectiveness of rear-seat outboard occupant restraint systems in passenger cars, focusing on the overall efficacy of two-point rear-seat occupant restraint systems and comparing the relative performance of two-and three-point rear-seat occupant restraint systems. While a significant body of literature exists comparing the safety performance of various types of front-seat occupant restraint systems, very little comprehensive accident data analysis (i.e., using large volumes of data) has been conducted to date comparing the safety performance of rear-seat occupant restraint systems. For the study, the motor vehicle accident databases from five states were examined to determine the reduction in rear-seat occupant injuries associated with two-point and three-point rear-seat occupant restraint systems.

This paper updates the findings of prior research addressing the relationship between seatback strength and likelihood of serious injury/fatality to belted drivers and rear seat occupants in rear-impact crashes. Statistical analyses were performed using 1995-2014 CY police-reported crash data from seventeen states. Seatback strength for over 100 vehicle model groupings (model years 1996-2013) was included in the analysis. Seatback strength is measured in terms of the maximum moment that results in 10 inches of seat displacement. These measurements range from 5,989 in-lbs to 39,918 in-lbs, resulting in a wide range of seatback strengths. Additional analysis was done to see whether Seat Integrated Restraint Systems (SIRS) perform better than conventional belts in reducing driver and rear seat occupant injury in rear impacts. Field data shows the severe injury rate for belted drivers in rear-impact crashes is less than 1%.

Studies used 1981–2006 FARS and state crash data to examine the relative importance of vehicular, driver, and environmental factors in influencing odds of driver fatality in two-vehicle (car-to-car, light truck-to-car, and light truck-to-light truck) frontal crashes for 1981–2003 model-year vehicles. It was found that all vehicle factors, including vehicle frontal stiffness, have a second order effect compared to vehicle weight. Most of the driver factors included were found to be highly significant. Assumptions and methodology used by other vehicle size/weight safety studies were also evaluated. Results show trends similar to those of other key studies, with one notable exception.