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

1. 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

2. @Risk Risk of severe injury (MAIS3+) Risk per km travelled
Relative to average car occupant
Belgium

3. @Risk Risk of severe injury (MAIS3+) Risk per km travelled
Relative to average car occupant
Belgium

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

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

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

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

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

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

10. 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!

11. 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

12. 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

13. 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

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

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

16. 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

17. 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.

18. Thank you for your attention!

19. 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,
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,
Martensen, H. 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.