Citation

Nie Q, Crawford PS, Bill A, Parker ST, Graettinger AJ, Smith RK, Elliot TB, Paschal EN. Transp. Res. Interdiscip. Persp. 2021; 9: e100318.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2021, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.trip.2021.100318

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Electronic crash records have become the standard crash reporting method in most states, but crash report elements vary between states and there is little publicly available information detailing the data provenance and life cycles for these records. As crash report granularity increases, proper data management is critical to ensure report quality with minimal errors. States are encouraged to meet federal standards for minimum crash report elements detailed in the Model Minimum Uniform Crash Criteria. MMUCC standardization helps states manage long-term crash data, enables multi-state analysis, and promotes sound traffic safety policies. This paper details how the states of Alabama and Wisconsin manage crash reports by evaluating their compliance with MMUCC standards as well as tracking the life cycle of crash reports in the two states from provenance, through approval and validation processes, to preservation as official records. A web-based MMUCC Compliance Tool was developed using elements from Alabama and Wisconsin crash reports, and aids other states in mapping existing crash report elements to MMUCC standards. The tool uses an automated check to map crash report elements and flags missing elements. The output of the tool includes a report detailing changes needed for the crash report to more closely align with the MMUCC standards. Common crash report lifecycle elements in Alabama and Wisconsin were identified, including initial web service validations, supervisor review, transactional database backups, linkage to driver record systems, and processes in place to manage and fix void requests. To aid crash recording procedures nationwide, a set of best practices for crash report lifecycle management is synthesized from the analysis.

Language: en

Keywords

Crash data; Crash report; Data provenance; Model minimum uniform crash criteria; Report workflow