Transcript
Page 1: Car ownership, mileage, and risky driving among young intermediate drivers

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Car ownership, mileage, and risky driving among young intermediate drivers

Presenter: Bridie Scott-Parker, PhD Candidate(Prof Barry Watson, Dr Mark King, Dr Melissa Hyde)

Australasian College of Road Safety National Conference, Melbourne, 1-2 September 2011

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Extent of the Problem

• Young drivers (17-25 yrs) in Australia, 2008– 26% of all road fatalities

• 80% were male

• Young drivers (17-24 yrs) in Queensland, 2008– 13% of licensed driver/ rider population

– 20% of road fatalities

– 33% of all fatalities involved young drivers/ riders

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0 61 2 3 4 5 70Years after licensing

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

No.

dri

vers

in c

asua

lty

cras

hes Provisional licence phaseLearne

rlicencephase

Open licence phase

Source: Queensland Government, 2005

Casualty Crash Involvement in Queensland by Licence Type

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Key changes to Queensland’s Graduated Driver Licensing (GDL) Program, July 2007

• Learner – 16 years of age (was 16.5 yrs)– 12 month minimum duration (was 6 months)– 100 hours supervised practice recorded in logbook

• Provisional – Two stages (was one three-year Provisional licence)

• Provisional 1: 12 month minimum duration, night-time passenger restrictions

Hazard Perception Test

• Provisional 2: 24 month minimum duration4

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Vehicle Ownership

• High rates of ownership amongst the most-inexperienced drivers– 28% - 70% of novices own car/primary access– Ownership rates increase considerably during

Provisional period– Ownership associated with more risky driving

• Speeding, particularly at night and with friends as passengers• Crashes, including ‘hooning’ crash involvement• Offences• Greater mileage

– Longer ownership duration = more offences and crash involvement

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Longitudinal Research • Survey 1

• 1032 drivers 17-19 years (609 females)• Queensland-wide sample, recruited April-June 2010

when passed practical driving assessment• Experiences and behaviours as a Learner driver

• Survey 2 • 6 months of driving with a Provisional P1 licence• 355 drivers 17-20 years (247 females)• Experiences and behaviours as a Provisional driver• 341 drivers provided ownership information

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Results: Exposure• Distance

• Average 175 km/week• 52% ≤ 100 km/week

• Duration • Average 7.5 hours/week• 87% ≤ 10 hours/week

• Consistency throughout Provisional period• 17% greater exposure at first• 47% same exposure throughout • 16% greater exposure now

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Results cont.

• 75% of Provisional drivers owned their own car• Crash involvement since gaining their Provisional

licence (6 months earlier)– 10% of drivers (male = female)

• Offence detected by Police– 18% of males– 10% of females

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Significant socio-demographic differences

Characteristic Own car

Australian-born Yes No

80.8%54.8%

English-speaking home Yes No

80.2%40.0%

Studying Yes No

74.5%83.9%

Employed Yes No

82.5%67.1%

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Significant exposure differences

Characteristic Own car No car

Duration of Learner period M (SD)

15.77 (5.14) 18.70 (7.17)

Hours in Learner logbook M (SD)

107.03 (16.03) 102.48 (20.01)

Exposure: Hours M (SD)

7.64 (8.80) 6.25 (9.84)

Exposure: Kilometres M (SD)

193.42 (170.23) 97.73 (96.81)

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Characteristic Own car No car

‘Talk out of ticket’ (punishment avoidance) No

100.0%77.4%

0.0%22.6%

Behaviour of Young Novice Drivers Scale (BYNDS) M (SD)

77.20 (15.37) 72.42 (13.76)

Risky Exposure subscale (BYNDS) M (SD)

26.01 (5.00) 22.68 (5.16)

Significant risky behaviours

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Other findings of interest• 95% of crashes reported by drivers residing in urban areas• Provisional drivers who reported a crash as a Learner

were less likely to report owning a car• Provisional drivers who reported an offence had been

detected as a Learner or as a Provisional driver – were significantly more likely to report owning a car – reported significantly greater duration and distance of exposure

• Provisional drivers who reported more exposure recently reported – less crash involvement – more offences had been detected

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Page 13: Car ownership, mileage, and risky driving among young intermediate drivers

Discussion & Future Research• High rate of ownership (75%) among the most

inexperienced drivers– Consistent with prior research: no gender differences;

owners more likely to be employed; greater exposure; more risky driving, crashes, offences

– Inconsistent with prior research: higher ownership rates in rural areas (88% vs 77% in urban areas, ns)

– Future research: When do they get the car? Car characteristics? Who pays for it? Is their driving monitored by Mum/Dad?

• Greater exposure than previously reported (particularly important as self-report is frequently an underestimate)– Future research: When/why driving? Where? With whom?

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Page 14: Car ownership, mileage, and risky driving among young intermediate drivers

• Learners who crashed less likely to own a car: Availability issue? Apprehension? Punishment?

• Every Learner who offended had a car as a Provisional driver: More exposure, offences, crashes, talking out of fine

• Owners reported a shorter Learner duration and more hours in the logbook: Highly motivated? Vehicle ownership plays a role?

• Research limitations: Self-report; Attrition (70% of Survey 2 participants were female)

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Discussion & Future Research cont.

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Discussion & Future Research cont.

• GDL programs may need to incorporate additional education for parents and novices – Family responsibilities frequently change with

licensure– Family car may be safer vehicle than young novice

driver can afford themselves– Increased risks associated with ownership (more

exposure, more risky driving, more crashes, more offences)

– Monitor car use (journey characteristics, passenger carriage)

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• Researchers have suggested owners are predisposed to risky driving, and the vehicle allows this to happen (psychological states/traits)– No differences in psychological distress (anxiety,

depression)– No differences in sensation seeking propensity and

sensitivity to reward• Suggests traits/states do not influence ownership,

rather ownership allows these traits/states to influence their behaviour

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Discussion & Future Research cont.

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Conclusions

• Most novice drivers have their own car within six months of independent driving

• Owning a car was associated with risky behaviour (Risky driving, more exposure, crashes, offences)

• GDL programs should incorporate an education component specifically addressing the increased risks for the novice who owns their car

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Questions?

Contact Details: Bridie Scott-Parker, PhD CandidateTelephone: +61 7 3138

7727Email:

[email protected]

Mark your Diaries!International Council on Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety Conference

(ICADTS T2013)August 2013, Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre


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