Citation

Miller TR, Lestina DC, Spicer RS. Annu. Proc. Assoc. Adv. Automot. Med. 1996; 40: 495-517.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1996, Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

This paper estimates 1993 U.S. highway crash incidence and costs by driver age, alcohol use, victim age, occupant status, and restraint use. Notable findings are (1) crash costs of novice drivers are high enough to yield preliminary benefit-cost ratios around 10 to 17 for a provisional licensing system that restricts driving after midnight and 25 for zero alcohol tolerance for young drivers with violators receiving a 6-month suspension, (2) the costs to people other than the intoxicated driver per mile driven at BACs of .08-.099% exceeds the value of driver mobility, (3) the safety costs of drunk driving appear to exceed $5.50 per mile, compared with $2.40 per mile driven at BACs of .08-.099%, and $.11 per mile driven sober, (4) highway crashes cause an estimated 3.4% of U.S. medical spending, including more than 12% of medical spending for ages 15-24, (5) ignoring crash-involved occupants whose restraint use is unknown, the 13% of occupants who police reported were traveling unrestrained accounted for an estimated 41% of the crash costs, and (6) if these unrestrained occupants buckled up, the medical costs of crashes would decline by an estimated 20% (almost $4 billion annually) and the comprehensive costs by 27%.

Language: en