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The effect of front-end vehicle height on pedestrian death risk

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  • Tyndall, Justin

Abstract

Pedestrian deaths in the US have risen in recent years. Concurrently, US vehicles have increased in size, which may pose a safety risk for pedestrians. In particular, the increased height of vehicle front-ends may present a danger for pedestrians in a crash, as the point of vehicle contact is more likely to occur at the pedestrian’s chest or head. I merge US crash data with a public data set on vehicle dimensions to test for the impact of vehicle height on the likelihood that a struck pedestrian dies. After controlling for crash characteristics, I estimate a 10 cm increase in the vehicle’s front-end height is associated with a 22% increase in fatality risk. I estimate that a cap on front-end vehicle heights of 1.25 m would reduce annual US pedestrian deaths by 509.

Suggested Citation

  • Tyndall, Justin, 2024. "The effect of front-end vehicle height on pedestrian death risk," Economics of Transportation, Elsevier, vol. 37(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecotra:v:37:y:2024:i:c:s2212012224000017
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ecotra.2024.100342
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Transportation; Safety; Health; Traffic fatalities; Externalities;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I1 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health
    • R41 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Transportation Economics - - - Transportation: Demand, Supply, and Congestion; Travel Time; Safety and Accidents; Transportation Noise
    • R42 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Transportation Economics - - - Government and Private Investment Analysis; Road Maintenance; Transportation Planning
    • R48 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Transportation Economics - - - Government Pricing and Policy

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