NTL Record

Title Evaluation of New York State’s Mandatory Occupant Restraint Law: Volume V: Fatalities and Injuries among Motor Vehicle Occupants Covered by the Law
Record ID 25727
Personal Name
Creator
McCartt, Anne Taylor; Dowling, Anne M.; Rood, Debra H.
Source v, 41 p. : ill.
Corporate Creator State University of New York. Research Foundation. Institute for Traffic Safety Management and Research
Corporate
Contributor
United States. Department of Transportation. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Publisher United States. Department of Transportation. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Publication Date 19870200
Language English
Abstract The report focuses on the ultimate measure of the effectiveness of New York State's Mandatory Occupant Restraint Law: reductions in fatalities and serious injuries among vehicle occupants. All front seat occupants and children under the age of ten, regardless of seating position, are covered by the law. The purpose of the analyses was to determine whether the pattern of injuries and fatalities sustained by these occupants in 1985, the first year of the law's implementation, differed from a baseline period prior to the law. Based on a comparison of the 1985 actual injury/fatality pattern with the pattern that would have been expected without the law, it is estimated that 220 fewer persons were killed in 1985. In addition, approximately 3,500 fewer occupants sustained serious injuries, 11,400 fewer occupants sustained moderate injuries, and 470 fewer occupants received minor injuries, while the number of uninjured occupants increased by 15,600. Analyses of the data further indicated that the general pattern of savings found for occupants statewide also occurred during each quarter of the year, within each region of the State, for both men and women, for each age group, and for occupants in each seating position. Variations in the size and pattern of savings were noted. Due to the imprecision of the injury classification scheme and the lack of reliable data on restraint use among accident victims, the savings in lives and injuries could only be estimated. However, the estimated savings in fatalities were comparable to those anticipated, based on the estimated effectiveness of safety belts and usage prior to and after implementation of New York's Mandatory Occupant Restraint Law. /Abstract from report summary page/
Rosap ID dot:1436
Rosap URL https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/1436
TRT Terms Manual safety belts; Front seat occupants; State laws; Injuries; Fatalities; Before and after studies; Statistics
Classification NTL - SAFETY AND SECURITY - Vehicle Design;
NTL - SAFETY AND SECURITY - Highway Safety;
NTL - SAFETY AND SECURITY - Human Factors;
NTL - LAWS AND REGULATIONS - State Laws and Regulations;
NTL - REFERENCES AND DIRECTORIES - Statistics
Geographical
Coverage
New York
TRIS Online
Accession No
00473199
Contract Number DTNH22-84-C-07467
Report Number DOT-HS-807-078; NTIS-PB87182960
Availability NHTSA - Behavioral Safety Research
Resource type Research Paper
URL https://ntlrepository.blob.core.windows.net/lib/25000/25700/25727/DOT-HS-807-078.pdf
Format PDF
Database NTL Digital Repository