VULNERABLE DRIVERS
Studies show who’s at risk
Men are more likely to be killed while driving than women and the number of teen collisions has declined, two new studies show.
The first study, done by the U. S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration ( NHTSA), shows that twice as many men than women were killed while driving in 2012 in the U. S. ( 23,808 men compared to 9,733 women).
The study said this huge disparity is due in part to the fact that men put more kilometres on their cars than women do.
The study also shows that men are more likely to drive under the influence: nearly 25 per cent of fatal male crashes involved a male driver with an illegal bloodalcohol level, compared to 15 per cent with women.
Other interesting findings:
Midnight to 3 a. m. on Saturdays and Sundays were the deadliest three- hour period for drivers.
The majority of people killed or injured in traffic crashes were drivers ( 63 per cent), followed by passengers ( 27 per cent), motorcyclists ( four per cent), pedestrians ( three per cent), and cyclists ( two per cent).
People 21 to 24 years old had the highest fatality rate and the highest injury rate.
Children five to nine years old had the lowest fatality rate, and children under five had the lowest injury rate.
The NHTSA study compiles data from a 2012 U. S. traffic survey.
Another study, done by the American Automobile Association, shows that while the number of teen car collisions has declined, the majority of people ( twothirds) who die in these collisions are not the teens themselves.
The study also said teen crash rates are higher than any other age group.
AAA found the crash rate among teens is higher during the summer months, increasing by 43 per cent compared to the rest of the year.