23
www.iihs.org Motorcycle safety in the US: Where are we? National Association of State Motorcycle Safety Administrators, Annual conference August 25, 2012 Eric R. Teoh, Senior Statistician
www.iihs.org
Motorcycle safety in the US: Where are we?National Association of State Motorcycle Safety Administrators, Annual conferenceAugust 25, 2012Eric R. Teoh, Senior Statistician
www.iihs.org
Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS)
• Nonprofit, independent research and communications organization
• Mission to save lives, prevent injuries, and reduce property damage in crashes
• Research goal to determine what works and what doesn’t to improve highway safety
• Funded by automobile insurance companies
www.iihs.org
Haddon matrix
pre-crash during crash after crash
people
vehicles and equipment
environment
www.iihs.org
Deaths of motorcyclists and passenger vehicle occupants in the United States1975-2010
1975
80
85
90
95
2000
05
10
0
10,000
20,000
30,000
40,000
0
2,000
4,000
6,000
8,000
10,000
passenger vehicles
motorcyclists
www.iihs.org
Motorcycles and passenger vehicles registered in the United States1975-2010
1975
80
85
90
95
2000
05
10
0
50,000,000
100,000,000
150,000,000
200,000,000
250,000,000
0
5,000,000
10,000,000
15,000,000
20,000,000
25,000,000
passenger vehicles
motorcycles
www.iihs.org
Risk factorsMotorcycle crashes and resulting injury
• Motorcycles largely lack the ability to protect their occupants from crash forces
– Lack of safety cage, restraints, airbags, crumple zones, etc.
– Transfers the burden of self protection to the riders
• Motorcycles lack conspicuity relative to other types of vehicles
• Motorcyclists, like other drivers, often take unnecessary risks
– Alcohol, speeding, lack of protective gear, distraction
– Varies by age, motorcycle type, and other factors
• Motorcycle braking is more complicated than for most other types of vehicles
www.iihs.org
Helmets and other protective gearMotorcyclist self protection
• Helmets and laws requiring them are the most effective countermeasures
– Helmets are 37 percent effective at preventing crash deaths
– Fifty-eight percent of motorcyclists killed in crashes in 2010 were helmeted. Had they all been helmeted, 706 would have survived
– In states with laws covering all riders, helmet use is virtually 100 percent and death rates are reduced
• Other forms of protective gear designed for motorcyclists include boots, gloves, pants, jackets, and eye protection
– Research on their effectiveness is less developed than that on helmets, largely due to lack of data on their use
www.iihs.org
States with universal helmet laws
1966
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
2000
01
02
03
04
05
06
07
08
09
10
11
12
0
10
20
30
40
50
1967: Helmet laws required for states to qualify for federal highway funds
1991: Incentive grants for helmet and safety belt laws
1976: Highway Safety Act removed authority to withhold funds from states
without helmet laws
1995: Grants removed
www.iihs.org
Role of the vehicleMotorcyclist self protection
• Motorcycle frontal airbag by Honda
– Gold Wing airbag looks good in crash tests
– Not studied in real-world crashes yet
– One upcoming model (VFR 1200T) rumored to include airbag and crumple zone to improve rider interaction with airbag
• Other crashworthiness issues
– Padding or breakaway components
– Crash bars
– Rider kinematics
www.iihs.org
Problem and countermeasuresMotorcycle conspicuity
• Motorcycles are harder to see than other types of vehicles
– Smaller profile, often a single headlight
– Rider often dressed in dark colors
• Daytime use of headlights associated with reduced crash risk
• Advanced crash avoidance technologies on passenger vehicles may help
– Forward collision warning, blind spot detection, lane change warning, lane departure warning, etc.
– Need to be able to detect a motorcycle
www.iihs.org
Motorcyclist deathsBy age, 1975-2010
1975
80
85
90
95
2000
05
10
0
1,000
2,000
3,000
4,000
≤ 29
30-39
40-49
50+
www.iihs.org
cruiser/standard touring sport touring sport / unclad sport
supersport0
100
200
300
400
500
Teoh and Campbell (2010)Mileage adjusted
Motorcycle driver deaths per registered vehicle yearRelative to cruiser/standard motorcycles, 2000, 2003-08
www.iihs.org
Characteristics (percent) of fatally injured motorcycle drivers2000, 2003-08
speeding BAC 0.08+ g/dL unhelmeted0
20
40
60
80
100cruiser/ standardtouringsport-touringsport/ unclad sportsupersport
www.iihs.org
Motorcycle braking
• More complicated than automobile braking
–Separate brake controls (typically)
–Locking a wheel in hard braking results in loss of stability
• Improper braking is a common crash factor
–Locked wheel
–Inadequate braking
–Non-use of front brake
www.iihs.org
Test track performanceAverage braking deceleration (m/s2)
training bike ABS bike own bike ABS bike0
2
4
6
8
10 Chart Titlenovicesexperienced riders
www.iihs.org
Fatal crash ratesFatal crashes per 10,000 registrations, 2003-08
without ABS with ABS0
2
4
6
8
37% reduction *
* statistically significant at 0.05 level
www.iihs.org
Collision insurance lossesPercent change in collision losses for motorcycles with ABS, 2003-12 models
claim frequency claim severity overall losses-25%
-20%
-15%
-10%
-5%
0%
5% Chart Title
significantnot significant
www.iihs.org
Effect of ABS on collision claim rateBy amount of time the motorcycle has been insured, 2006-10 models
1-90 days 91-720 days-40
-20
0
www.hldi.org
www.hldi.org
www.iihs.org
Rider training
• No demonstrated reduction in crash risk
– Why?
– Courses evolving
– Still important
• Filtering potential new riders?
• Opportunities
– Encourage use of DOT-compliant helmets
– ABS
www.iihs.org
Conclusions
• Progress in motorcycle safety hasn’t kept pace with that of passenger vehicles
• Helmet laws are an important first step
• Vehicle improvements
– Conspicuity, occupant protection, ABS, technology
• Data needs
• No single solution
www.iihs.orgDedicated to reducing deaths, injuries,and property damage on the highwaywww.iihs.org
