Is There a Threat to Driver Safety When Emergency Vehicles Are Approaching?

May 10, 2013
11:45 AM – 12:45 PM
200 South Quad

Christopher J. Drucker from the University of Minnesota's School of Public Health, Division of Environmental Health Sciences, will be visiting the University of Iowa campus on Friday, May 3 at 11:45 a.m. in 200 South Quad, to discuss if there is a threat to driver safety when emergency vehicles are approaching in traffic. All are welcome to attend!

Motor vehicle crashes involving civilian drivers and emergency vehicles (EVs) pose a public health hazard. However, characteristics among civilian drivers have not been examined adequately. To assess the characteristics of drivers involved in emergency-civilian crashes, directed acyclic graphs were developed a priori to identify parsimonious models used to generate unconfounded effect estimates. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Fatality Analysis Reporting System and the National Automotive Sampling System General Estimates System were used to analyze exposure-outcome relationships. Overall findings of this study suggest drivers may have difficulties in visually detecting EVs in different environments. An EV warning system may not be as effective in conditions where: a driver’s vision is obstructed (e.g., buildings, parked vehicles) or limited (e.g., nighttime); drivers are distracted; and where roadway locations are cluttered (e.g., intersections, urban environments). This analysis served as a basis for development of relevant driver simulation scenarios that are integral to investigation of the efficacy of potential intervention.

*Note: This event was originally scheduled for Friday, May 3 but has been rescheduled for Friday, May 10. Please contact Dan McGehee with any questions at daniel-mcgehee@uiowa.edu

Individuals with disabilities are encouraged to attend all University of Iowa-sponsored events. If you are a person with a disability who requires an accommodation in order to participate in this program, please contact Dragana Petic at dragana-petic@uiowa.edu.