Event

We welcome you all to a SAFER seminar by Associate Prof. Robert Anderson, University of Adelaide who is visiting SAFER on the 19th and 20th of February.

When?: Thursday February 19, 2015, at 13:00-14:00
Speaker: Associate Prof. Robert Andersson, University of Adelaide
Host: Anders Kullgren

Abstract. A novel application of age-period-cohort methods (normally used in studies of human disease) are used to explain changes in vehicle based crash rates in New South Wales, Australia over the period 2003-2010. Models are developed using vehicle age, crash period and vehicle cohort to explain changes in the rate of driver fatalities and injuries. The risk of crashing increases with vehicle age. Declines in risk are associated with vehicle cohorts (i.e. vehicle safety improvements) since 1996, accelerating to 12 percent per vehicle cohort year for cohorts since 2004. Period effects (i.e. other road safety measures) appear to have contributed to declines of up to about two percent per annum to the driver- fatality single-vehicle crash rate, and possibly only negligible improvements to the driver-injury single vehicle crash rate. Vehicle improvements appear to have been responsible for a decline in per-vehicle crash risk of at least three percent per calendar year for both severity levels over the same period. Given the acceleration in the decline in risk associated with more recent vehicle cohorts, continued declines in per-vehicle crash risk over coming years are almost certain. Projections of driver casualty numbers will be made based on various scenarios of continued improvements or no more improvements to the Safe System.

Bio. Robert has had a 21-year career in full-time research at the University of Adelaide, where he currently holds the title of Associate Professor. Rob commenced his research career in 1993 at the Road Accident Research Unit (RARU), investigating crashes for a study on airbag effectiveness. In 1999 he completed his PhD on the biomechanics of impact-induced diffuse axonal injury. He was appointed Deputy Director at RARU in 1999 and then at the Centre for Automotive Safety Research that replaced it. Over the past 15 years he has overseen the development of a test facility for impact testing vehicular structures, developed expertise in mass data analysis to study the benefits of new vehicle technology, studied pedestrian kinematics and pedestrian injury biomechanics and chaired an international committee on computer simulation of pedestrian crash mechanics. He has published in excess of 100 journal articles, conference papers and government reports on many aspects of crashes, injury mechanisms and prevention, road safety and vehicle safety. In 2014, Robert joined Hall Technical as consultant in crash causation and injury mechanisms. He retains his academic position at the University of Adelaide.
 
Where?: SAFER, Lindholmspiren 3, Göteborg. Room: Demostudion, floor two. Please ask the reception in the ground floor to let you in.

The seminar is open for all who are interested!