Walking and Cycling Seniors The most vulnerable road users Heike Martensen Belgian Road Safety Institute

The risk of walking and cycling? Walking and cycling is good for all of us! Environment Condition Health What are the risks? How can we make it more safe? Data needs Crash data Hospital data Mobility data

@Risk Risk of severe injury (MAIS3+) Risk per km travelled Relative to average car occupant Belgium 2007-2011

@Risk Risk of severe injury (MAIS3+) Risk per km travelled Relative to average car occupant Belgium 2007-2011

The risk of walking and cycling? Large risks for Beginners Elderly Especially 75+ Motorcyclists Cyclists Pedestrians

The aging society Share of elderly people in Belgian Population Seniors form a growing part of society. Source: Belgian Federal Planning Bureau, 2012

The aging society – comparing countries Rising number of senior citizens in all European countries. Source: Eurostat

The aging society – increasing mobility Seniors are a very heterogeneous group. Mobility is increasing. Source: GOAL, 2012

The aging society – crash statistics Number of elderly fatalities and percentage of all road fatalities, EU, 2005-2014 Crash statistics reflect rising share of elderly people in society and transport. Source: ERSO 2016

Fatal crash victims in Belgium Half of the elderly victims who died in traffic were pedestrians or cyclists. Belgium 2008-2012

Age related changes Safer More careful, more respect for rules Avoiding critical situations (rush-hour, darkness) Limitations Sight: sharpness, periphery, darkness, depth Attention: double tasking, overview, relevance Reaction time: perception, judgement, decision, execution. Flexibility: Head turns, balance, steadiness Vulnerability: Resistance, recovery Wide differences among elderly!

Pedestrian accidents 1 out of 3 pedestrians killed was falling (no vehicle involved) In Belgium not a “road traffic accident” Mostly elderly pedestrians For vehicle related crashes: 7 out of 10 was crossing road (elderly) Unsigned and zebra crossings Main causes: Misjudgement of vehicle speeds Overestiation of own walking speed Traffic density Two sided traffic Feypell, Papadimitriou, & Granié, 2010 Dommes, Cavallo, Vienne, & Aillerie, 2012 Liu & Tung, 2014 Ewert, 2012

Cyclist accidents 4 out of 10: no motor vehicle involved Seldom registered by police Main causes for elderly: Fall (-> 75+) Obstacle (-> 50+) Other cyclist (-> 50+) For vehicle related crashes: Crossings Turning left Nuyttens & Van Belleghem, 2014 Davidse et al., 2014 Martensen, 2014

Accident with seniors More accidents at crossings Left turn (cars & cyclists) Crossing (Pedestrians) What’s going on? Complex situation Judgement distance & speed of others Perception of others in periphery. Balance & stability Why so serious? Physical vulnerability

What to do? Safe for elderly -> safe for everybody Overview Right angels Traffic from one side only Sight distance Lower speed

What to do? Maintenance Surfaces (potholes, slippery leaves, ice…) Avoidance of obstacles Curb

What to do? Data Falling pedestrians & cyclists are never/seldom registered by police Linking hospital and police data Including pedestrians falling into accident statistics? Other aspects can make elderly refrain from walking and cycling Darkness Fear of crime Need for detailed mobility data

Conclusion Walking & cycling is healthy! But … Walkers and cyclists have an increased risked for severe injuries Especially 75+ Half of elderly killed in traffic have been walking or cycling Making cycling & walking safer is a necessary precondition for promoting it – especially among seniors.

Thank you for your attention! heike.martensen@bivv.be

References Dommes, A., Cavallo, V., Vienne, F., & Aillerie, I. (2012). Age-related differences in street-crossing safety before and after training in older pedestrians. Accident Analysis & Prevention 44, 42-47. Ewert, U. (2012). Faktenblatt Senioren als Fussgänger. Bern: BfU. European Commission, Traffic Safety Basic Facts on The Elderly, European Commission, Directorate General for Transport, June 2016. Feypell, V., Papadimitriou, E., & Granié, M. (2010). Pedestrian safety data. In: Functional needs - Part B of the final report to the COST 358 project Pedestrian's quality needs . Delft: European Science Foundation. Liu, Y., & Tung, Y. (2014). Risk analysis of pedestrians' road-crossing decisions: Effects of age, time gap, time of day, and vehicle speed. Safety Science, 77-82. Martensen, H. (2014). @Risk. Analyse van het risico op ernstige en dodelijke ver-wondingen in het verkeer in functie van leeftijd en verplaatsingswijze. Brussel: Belgisch Instituut voor de Verkeersveiligheid – Kenniscentrum Verkeersveiligheid. Martensen, H. (2014). Senioren in het verkeer. Mobiliteit en verkeersveiligheid van oudere weggebruikers. Brussels: Knowledgecenter Road Safety, Belgian Road Safety Institute.