Most crash reports do not capture critical data, says National Safety Council

A National Safety Council review of motor vehicle crash reports from across the US found no state fully captures critical data needed to address and understand the rise in roadway fatalities. Crash reports from all 50 states lack fields or codes for law enforcement to record the level of driver fatigue at the time of a crash, while many others lack fields to capture texting, hands-free cell phone use and specific types of drug use if drugs are detected, including marijuana. Excluding these fields limits the
April 25, 2017 Read time: 2 mins
A 4953 National Safety Council review of motor vehicle crash reports from across the US found no state fully captures critical data needed to address and understand the rise in roadway fatalities. Crash reports from all 50 states lack fields or codes for law enforcement to record the level of driver fatigue at the time of a crash, while many others lack fields to capture texting, hands-free cell phone use and specific types of drug use if drugs are detected, including marijuana. Excluding these fields limits the ability to effectively address these problems, says the report.


States are also failing to capture teen driver restrictions, the use of advanced driver assistance technologies and of infotainment systems. The findings are summarised in the new NSC report, Undercounted is Underinvested: How incomplete crash reports impact efforts to save lives, released during Distracted Driving Awareness Month.
   
Preliminary estimates from the National Safety Council indicate as many as 40,000 people died in car crashes in 2016, marking a six per cent increase over 2015 and a 14 per cent increase over 2014 – the most dramatic two-year escalation since 1964. Without a clear understanding of the scope of the problem, regulations, laws and policies cannot be more effective.

The National Safety Council is calling on the traffic safety community to take several actions to ensure better data collection and has compiled a full list of recommendations, which is available on its website.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • StreetLight Data reveals most dangerous US cities for pedestrians
    July 3, 2023
    Research comes as GHSA says pedestrian deaths in US reached a 41-year high in 2022
    Read More
  • Bristol’s buses trial CycleEye detection system
    July 7, 2017
    Fusion Processing’s Jim Hutchinson looks at a two-year trial of the company’s cyclist detection system. Is cycling in a city dangerous? Well, that depends where you are and how you view statistics. Malmö is far more bike-friendly than Mumbai and the risk can either be perceived as small - one death per 29 million miles cycled in the UK in 2013 - or large - that equated to 109 deaths in the same year. Whatever your personal take on the data, the effect of these accidents can be felt indirectly too. News of c
    Read More
  • Government unveils new measures to further improve road safety
    December 22, 2015
    The UK Department for Transport (DfT) has unveiled a raft of measures to improve the safety of Britain’s roads, including US$3 million for research into driver education, including the possibility of giving learner drivers motorway experience with an instructor before taking their test.
    Read More
  • Alcohol interlocks aid drink drive adherence
    October 28, 2016
    The use of alcohol interlocks to prevent drink driving and change driver behaviour is gaining ground around the world but needs greater buy-in from authorities as Colin Sowman discovers. The often repeated mantra says that prevention is better than cure - and none more so than in the case of drink-driving. The introduction of the breathalyser provided an objective indication of alcohol consumption instead of having drivers touch their nose or walk in a straight line. Initially breathalysers were used as a r
    Read More

Highlighted Content