european union ageing europe: implications for eu policy vehicle safety adrian hobbs/ murray mackay
TRANSCRIPT
E T S CE T S C
EUROPEAN UNION
Ageing Europe: Implications for EU Policy
Vehicle Safety
Adrian Hobbs/ Murray Mackay
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The Ageing Road User
• Living longer
• More mobile
• Greater wealth
• Downsizing to smaller cars
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Vulnerability to Injury
• Reduced bone strength
• Osteoporosis
• Female from 45 - 50 years
• Male from 55 - 60 years
• Main bones affected
• Ribs
• Upper and Lower Limbs
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Vulnerability to Injury
• Less flexible spine
• Inter-vertebral disc degeneration
• Increased susceptibility to injury
Also
• Reduced movement
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Vision & Perception
• Reduced visual acuity
• Particularly at dusk
• Perception errors
• Looked but didn’t see
• Particularly two-wheelers
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Recovery from Injury
• Slow recovery
• Risk of complications
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External Influences
• Downsizing to smaller cars
• Higher seat belt forces
• Use of thicker clothing
• Seat belt slack
• Travelling in the rear seat
• Poor seat belt geometry
• Lack of pretensioners
• Lack of load limiters
• Absence of airbags
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Injury Risk
• Three times more likely to die in frontal or side impact
• 286 % increase in aged fatalities predicted
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Implications for Vehicle Design
• Safer car fronts
• Older pedestrian casualties - 50% of pedestrian deaths in OECD countries
• On arterial roads
• Unsuitable for pedestrianisation
• Unsuitable for traffic calming
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Implications for Vehicle Design
• EU Directive on safer car fronts
• High level of protection required by the EU Treaty
• Needs to implement with certainty the state-of-the-art EEVC crash tests, used by EuroNCAP since 1996
• EU Savings: up to 2000 lives for additional costs at design stage @ 30 euros per car
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Implications for Vehicle Design
• Improved compatibility
• Good early structural interaction
• Improved deceleration pulse Shape
• Improved protection in small cars
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Implications for Vehicle Design
• Day running lights
• Visibility of two-wheelers to aid perception