Girls crash too: trends in single vehicle crash rates in young and adult, male and female drivers

Abstract

Young adult drivers (YADs) are over-represented in crashes mainly because of their age and inexperience. Studying single vehicle crashes by age and sex may identify new approaches to intervention. In 2014, male YAD (17-19 years) crash casualty rates were 11.4 times higher than older drivers (30-59 years), compared with 17.6 times higher in 2005, and 1.9 times female YAD, compared with 2.5 times higher in 2005. Crash casualty rates involving male and female YADs are declining. Action is needed to address YAD crash casualties involving both males and females. Graduated driver licensing is a universal approach that has the potential to do this.

Are there sex differences in crash and crash-related injury between men and women? A 13-year cohort study of young drivers in Australia

“…In our cohort, men were at higher risk of certain types of crash and were twice as likely as women to be involved in a single vehicle crash. This affirms previous research that has identified men at higher risk of single vehicle crashes ( Amarasingha & Dissanayake, 2014 ; Bingham & Ehsani, 2012 ; Brown et al, 2014 ; Jones, 2017 ; Tsai et al, 2008 ). A hypothesized explanation for this is that single vehicle crashes result from increased risk-taking behaviour, for example overtaking in a single lane road or speeding, that men are more likely to engage in than women ( Jiménez-Mejías et al, 2014 ).…”

“…As drivers, young men have long been known to be at increased risk of crash compared to young women and older drivers ( Amarasingha & Dissanayake, 2014 ; Jones, 2017 ). Our results build on these established sex differences and demonstrate that this increased risk does not diminish as men get older and gain more driving experience through the early to middle years of adulthood.…”

“…Much of the literature exploring sex differences in crash involvement has focused on the intersection of crash conditions and driver behaviour ( Al-Balbissi, 2003 ; Amarasingha & Dissanayake, 2014 ; Bener & Crundall, 2008 ; Jiménez-Mejías et al, 2014 ; Jones, 2017 ; Kelley-Baker & Romano, 2010 ; Oviedo-Trespalacios & Scott-Parker, 2018 ; Romano et al, 2008 ). These studies show that sex differences in driving behaviour may account for much of the difference in crash involvement, with men driving further distances and more likely to engage in risky driving behaviours than women, for example, men tend to be over-represented in crashes associated with risky driving behaviours such as: speeding ( Kelley-Baker & Romano, 2010 ); violations and driver faults due to lack of attention and impatience ( Al-Balbissi, 2003 ); and alcohol impaired driving ( Amarasingha & Dissanayake, 2014 ; Kelley-Baker & Romano, 2010 ; Tsai et al, 2008 , 2010 ).…”

“…However, much of this research exploring sex differences relies on self-reported crash data, which may underestimate the rate of crash ( Bener & Crundall, 2008 ; Jiménez-Mejías et al, 2014 ; Oviedo-Trespalacios & Scott-Parker, 2018 ). While other studies used routinely collected crash data, they were not able to explore associations with individual factors of interest such as risk perception and personality traits ( Al-Balbissi, 2003 ; Amarasingha & Dissanayake, 2014 ; Jones, 2017 ; Kelley-Baker & Romano, 2010 ; Romano et al, 2008 ; Tsai et al, 2010 ).…”

Sex Differences in the Amount and Patterns of Car-Driving Exposure in Spain, 2014 to 2017: An Application of a Quasi-Induced Exposure Approach

“…Many studies have addressed sex or gender differences in population-based rates of road crash injury or death, with higher values usually observed in men [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ], specifically in drivers’ risk of road crash or crash-related injury or death. In fact, there is consistent evidence showing increased male-to-female ratios in this context [ 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 ], although this pattern seems to change with age, with higher risk values found in men, especially at younger ages [ 11 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 ]. Furthermore, conflicting findings arise when specific issues, such as injury severity, are considered (i.e., depending on whether death or serious injury is considered as the outcome, the risk may be higher for men or for women in different studies) [ 3 , 8 , 17 ].…”