Citation

Mackay GM, Walton A. Proc. Am. Assoc. Automot. Med. Annu. Conf. 1984; 28: 1-14.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1984, Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

This paper reviews some of the published data on crashes in Europe involving trucks and buses with other road users. The mass ratio effect in relation to car occupants is discussed, together with the mismatching of structures, based on 226 in-depth cases involving cars and heavy commercial vehicles (HCVs). The predominance of collisions with the front of trucks is illustrated at 63%, with rear impacts at 18% and lateral impacts at 11%. The greatest risk of death for a car occupant is in cases where trucks strike the sides of cars. The consequences for design emphasize the importance of geometrical and structural matching of under-run protective structures, particularly at the front of trucks; such compatibility of truck and car structures being one of the most important priorities in crashworthiness once occupant restraints in cars are widely used.