Cranfield
College of Aeronautics Report No 8506June 1985
TECrifóiSCHE HOGESCHOOL DEtrl
LUCHTVAART- EN hUiV^FHVA^RTTICHNISII
Kluyverweg 1 - 06UT
The Role of the Motorist in Motorcycle Safety: A Preliminary ^ . „ ^ Mg|. Examination in Terms of (a) Motorcyclists'Opinions of Motorist • " "'''''• '""^ Culpability and (b) The Influence of Motorcycling Experience on
Motorists' Opinions and Knowledge
Peter Brooks, BSc and Helen Muir, MA PhD
College of Aeronautics Applied Psychology Unit Cranfield Institute of Technology
Cranfield
College of Aeronautics Report No 8506June 1985
The Role of the Motorist in Motorcycle Safety: A Preliminary Examination in Terms of (a) Motorcyclists' Opinions of Motorist Culpability and (b) The Influence of Motorcycling Experience on
Motorists' Opinions and Knowledge
Peter Brooks, BSc and Helen Muir, MA PhD
College of Aeronautics Applied Psychology Unit Cranfield Institute of Technology
Cranfield, Bedford UK
ISBN 094 7767 193 £7.50
"The views expressed herein are those of the authors alone and do not necessarily represent those of the Institute."
FOREWORD
The following report was prepared during a programme of research leading to the award of a Doctor of Philosophy degree. The a r q u m e n t s , concepts and findings introduced in this interim report are therefore to be more fully discussed in a PhD thesis of which the following two studies will form a part,
CLARIFICATION OF TERMS
In the discussion to follow, the term "motorcycle" encompasses mopeds and motor scooters in addition to conventional motorcycles. For clarity the term PTW, standing for Powered Two-Wheeler, will be used in this respect and the term "rider" or "motorcyclist" will include all operators of such vehicles.
The term "driver" or "motorist" is used only to refer to the operators of four-wheeled motor vehicles.
S U M M A R Y The s i z e and n a t u r e of t h e p r o b l e m of d r i v e r c u l p a b i l i t y w i t h r e g a r d to p o w e r e d t w o - w h e e l e r ( P T W ) a c c i d e n t c a u s a t i o n is p r e s e n t e d . T h e i n i t i a t i o n of a p r o g r a m m e of r e s e a r c h to g a i n f u r t h e r i n s i g h t i n t o d r i v e r c u l p a b i l i t y is d e s c r i b e d . Two i n i t i a l s t u d i e s a r e r e p o r t e d for t h e i r r e l e v a n c e in t h i s r e s p e c t . A s u r v e y of 2 0 9 PTW o p e r a t o r s w a s u n d e r t a k e n (Study 1 ) . T h i s f i e l d w o r k f o l l o w e d i n - d e p t h i n t e r v i e w s with f i v e m o t o r c y c l i s t s w h i c h w e r e c o n d u c t e d to d e t e r m i n e how d r i v e r c u l p a b i l i t y w a s i n t e r p r e t e d by t h e s e m o t o r c y c l i s t s . D r i v e r c u l p a b i l i t y is i n t e r p r e t e d as s t e m m i n g f r o m a lack of k n o w l e d g e a b o u t the c o m p l e x i t i e s of m o t o r c y c l i n g a n d / o r a lack of r e s p e c t for m o t o r c y c l i s t s . S t u d y 1 d e t e r m i n e d : (a) t h e e x t e n t of a g r e e m e n t w i t h s u c h i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s ; (b) t h e e x t e n t to w h i c h m o t o r c y c l i s t s feel t h e r e is a n e e d for i m p r o v e d d r i v e r b e h a v i o u r as a m a j o r e f f e c t i v e c o u n t e r m e a s u r e for t h e p r e v e n t i o n of PTW a c c i d e n t s . O n e h u n d r e d p e r c e n t of t h e PTW o p e r a t o r s s u r v e y e d w e r e in f a v o u r of an i m p r o v e m e n t of car d r i v e r a w a r e n e s s in t e r m s of g r e a t e r r e s p e c t for m o t o r c y c l i s t s , and 9 8 p e r c e n t w e r e in f a v o u r of an i m p r o v e m e n t in car d r i v e r a w a r e n e s s in t e r m s of g r e a t e r k n o w l e d g e of t h e c o m p l e x i t i e s of m o t o r c y c l i n g and r i d e r v u l n e r a b i l i t y in c e r t a i n c o n d i t i o n s . In c o m p a r i s o n w i t h a s e l e c t i o n of o t h e r p o s s i b l e c o u n t e r m e a s u r e s , t h e i m p r o v e m e n t of n o v i c e r i d e r b e h a v i o u r t h r o u g h r i d e r t r a i n i n g and t h e i m p r o v e m e n t of car d r i v e r a w a r e n e ^ ^ in t e r m s of k n o w l e d g e and r e s p e c t w e r e b e l i e v e d to h a v e t h e g r e a t e s t p o t e n t i a l e f f e c t i v e n e s s for p r e v e n t i n g PTW a c c i d e n t s . In a t t e m p t i n g to e x p l a i n t h e d r i v e r b e h a v i o u r w h i c h may r e s u l t in a PTW a c c i d e n t , t h e c o n c e p t s of t e c h n i c a l a w a r e n e s s and s o c i a l a w a r e n e s s are f o r w a r d e d and a r g u e d to f i g u r e p r o m i n e n t l y in an a p p r o a c h to t h e p r o b l e m w h i c h p a r t i c u l a r l y c o n s i d e r s s o c i a l and p s y c h o l o g i c a l f a c t o r s . T h e c o n c e p t s e n a b l e a f r a m e w o r k w i t h w h i c h it is p o s s i b l e to e n c o m p a s s d r i v e r c u l p a b i l i t y as p e r c e i v e d by t h e PTW o p e r a t o r s s u r v e y e d in S t u d y 1. S t u d y 2 w a s c o n d u c t e d to d e d u c e w h e t h e r or not a s a m p l e of car d r i v e r s ( N = 2 1 6 ) c o u l d be d i s c r i m i n a t e d , a c c o r d i n g to t h e n a t u r e and e x t e n t of t h e i r m o t o r c y c l i n g e x p e r i e n c e , w i t h r e g a r d to how t h e y r e s p o n d e d to a q u e s t i o n n a i r e r e l a t i n g , p r i m a r i l y , to t e c h n i c a l and s o c i a l a w a r e n e s s . V a r i o u s d i s c r i m i n a t i o n s on t h e b a s i s of t e c h n i c a l and s o c i a l a w a r e n e s s w e r e f o u n d p o s s i b l e b e t w e e n m o t o r i s t s w h o had no form of m o t o r c y c l i n g e x p e r i e n c e and m o t o r i s t s w h o w e r e p a s t a n d / o r p r e s e n t o p e r a t o r s of P T W s . T h e r e s u l t s a r e d i s c u s s e d w i t h r e g a r d to t h e i r p o s s i b l e i m p l i c a t i o n s for d r i v e r b e h a v i o u r in t h e v i c i n i t y of a P T W . T h e d i s c r i m i n a t i o n s s e r v e to s u p p o r t t h e a p p r o a c h to t h e p r o b l e m of PTW r i d e r c a s u a l t i e s and p r o v i d e i n s i g h t into t h e c o m p o n e n t s and d i m e n s i o n s of t h e c o n c e p t s of t e c h n i c a l a w a r e n e s s and s o c i a l a w a r e n e s s . T h e p r i m a r y d i r e c t i v e s of f u t u r e r e s e a r c h sre b r i e f l y d i s c u s s e d . T h e s e i n c l u d e t h e f u r t h e r e x p l o r a t i o n of t h e t e c h n i c a l and s o c i a l a w a r e n e s s of m o t o r i s t s in t e r m s of a p o s s i b l e r e l a t i o n s h i p w i t h d r i v e r p e r f o r m a n c e , d e c i s i o n m a k i n g and risk t a k i n g . F u r t h e r s u g g e s t i o n s , in t h e long t e r m , c o n s i s t of t h e e v a l u a t i o n of c o u n t e r m e a s u r e d e v e l o p m e n t i n v o l v i n g s u p p l e m e n t s to t h e e d u c a t i o n of p r e s e n t car d r i v e r s , t h e t r a i n i n g of l e a r n e r m o t o r i s t s and t h e e n f o r c e m e n t of s u i t a b l e o r i v e r b e h a v i o u r .
CONTENTS
Page
FOREWORD iii CLARIFICATION OF TERMS lii
SUMMARY IV INTRODUCTION 1 STUDY 1: M o t o r c y c l i s t s ' Opinions of Motorist Culpability 5
2.1 Objectives 5 2.2 The Preventive Counterflieasures Under Assessment 5
2.3 Questionnaire and Procedure 6
2.4 Subjects 7 2.5 Resul ts 7 2.6 Discussion 9
STUDY 2: The Influence of Motorcycling Experience on
Motorists' Opinions and Knowledge 11 3.1 Introduction to Objectives of Research 11
3.2 Questionnaire and Procedure 12
3.3 Study Hypotheses 14 3.4 Group Assignment of Motorists 15
3.5 Subjects 15 3.6 Results and Discussion 16
3 . 6 . 1 Some I n i t i a l CoRiments 16 3.6.2 Equality of Group Assignment 16
3.6.3 Motorists' Knowledge of Certain Aspects of Car Driving....17 3.6.4 Motorists' Knowledge of Certain Aspects of PTWs:
"Technical Awareness" 18 3.6.5 Motorists' Rating of Inappropriate Driver Behaviour in
Various Potential Conflict Situations Involving a PTW 20 3.6.6 Motorists' Responses to the Opinion Statements:
"Social Awareness" 22 GENERAL DISCUSSION 25 RECOMMENDED AREAS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH 33
5.1 Driver Performance and Technical and/or Social Awareness 33 5.2 Exploration of the Decision Making and Risk Taking
Behaviour of the Motorist 33 5.3 Countermeasure Development 34
5. 3.1 Driver Education 34 5.3.2 Driver Training 34 5.3.3 Evaluation of a Role for Enforcement in improving
Driver Behaviour 35 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 35
1 I N T R O D U C T I O N M a n y s t a t i s t i c a l s u m m a r i e s of PTW a c c i d e n t s h a v e s h o w n a l a r g e i n v o l v e m e n t of m o t o r i s t s in PTW a c c i d e n t s . M o r e o v e r , t h e r e is a l a r g e a s s i g n m e n t of r e s p o n s i b i l i t y to t h e o t h e r v e h i c l e d r i v e r i n v o l v e d in t h e e n c o u n t e r . T a k i n g a r e c e n t e x a m p l e , t h e o p p o s i n g m o t o r i s t r a t h e r t h a n t h e m o t o r c y c l i s t w a s j u d g e d to be at f a u l t 6 4 . 7 p e r c e n t of t h e t i m e in t h e m u l t i - v e h i c l e a c c i d e n t d a t a o b t a i n e d by Hurt et al, ( 1 9 8 1 ) in t h e U n i t e d S t a t e s . B u c h a n a n et al. ( 1 9 8 2 ) c h o s e to e m p h a s i s e t h i s d a t a for r e v e a l i n g that t h r e e out of e v e r y four m o t o r c y c l e a c c i d e n t s i n v o l v e d a c o l l i s i o n with a n o t h e r v e h i c l e . The H u r t et al. data w a s o b t a i n e d from t h e o n - s c e n e , i n - d e p t h i n v e s t i g a t i o n s of 9 0 0 m o t o r c y c l e a c c i d e n t s in L o s A n g e l e s , C a l i f o r n i a . O n l y 2 3 0 of t h e 9 0 0 a c c i d e n t c a s e s w e r e s i n g l e - v e h i c l e c o l l i s i o n s w h e r e t h e m o t o r c y c l e did not m a k e c o n t a c t with a n o t h e r v e h i c l e . E v e n in s o m e of t h e s e s i n g l e - v e h i c l e c o l l i s i o n s "... a n o t h e r v e h i c l e w a s i n v o l v e d in a c c i d e n t c a u s a t i o n , for e x a m p l e , an a u t o m o b i l e t u r n s left i n f r o n t of t h e o n c o m i n g v e h i c l e , t h e m o t o r c y c l e r i d e r o v e r b r a k e s , s l i d e s out and f a l l s to t h e r o a d - w a y but d o e s not c o l l i d e w i t h t h e a u t o m o b i l e . F o r t y - n i n e such c a s e s o c c u r r e d so that t h e r e w e r e 181 c a s e s w h e r e o n l y t h e m o t o r c y c l e w a s i n v o l v e d " (Hurt et al., 1 9 8 1 , p. 4 2 ) . H u r t et al. (p. 3 5 ) c o n c l u d e d f r o m t h e i r i n v e s t i g a t i o n t h a t "Any f u t u r e r e s e a r c h on m o t o r c y c l e a c c i d e n t s s h o u l d i n c l u d e m o r e i n - d e p t h e x a m i n a t i o n of c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s of t h e d r i v e r of t h e o t h e r v e h i c l e i n v o l v e d in c o l l i s i o n w i t h t h e m o t o r c y c l e . T h e d o m i n a n t c u l p a b i l i t y of t h e d r i v e r of t h e o t h e r v e h i c l e s h o w n in t h e s e d a t a d e m a n d s f u r t h e r d e t a i l e d e x a m i n a t i o n ...". In B r i t a i n , W h i t t i n g t o n ( 1 9 8 1 ) c o n s i d e r e d t h e e v i d e n c e from 5 5 C o r o n e r ' s i n q u e s t s , c o n c e r n i n g 51 s e p a r a t e m o t o r c y c l e a c c i d e n t s in B i r m i n g h a m , and as a r e s u l t f o u n d that "... t h e e r r o r s of o t h e r r o a d u s e r s w e r e t h e m o s t s i g n i f i c a n t i n d i v i d u a l c a u s e of fatal a c c i d e n t s " {ibid., p. 2 6 7 ) .
E x t r a c t i n g d a t a from Road A c c i d e n t s G r e a t B r i t a i n (RAGB) 1 9 8 0 , M i n t e r ( 1 9 8 4 ) a n a l y s e d t h e v a r i o u s c a s u a l t y r a t e s for r i d e r s and o t h e r road u s e r s in u r b a n and r u r a l l o c a t i o n s . R A G B 1980 d e f i n e d " c a s u a l t y r a t e " as t h e n u m b e r of c a s u a l t i e s in a year d i v i d e d by t h e d i s t a n c e t r a v e l l e d in that y e a r . In c o n s i d e r i n g t h e d a t a for P T W s , M i n t e r (p. 2 7 ) p o i n t e d out that "Town r a t e s are h i g h e r than C o u n t r y r a t e s , and it is a p p a r e n t t h a t Town r i d i n g g e n e r a t e s m o r e m i n o r i n j u r i e s t h a n C o u n t r y r i d i n g . For c a r s , t h e p o s i t i o n is d i f f e r e n t , in that Fatal and S e r i o u s c a s u a l t y r a t e s a r e h i g h e r in C o u n t r y than in T o w n . ... T h i s a n a l y s i s r e v e a l s the very high d a m a g e r a t e s to r i d e r s in b u i l t - u p a r e a s . T h e f a c t is v e r y c l e a r t h a t in c o u n t r y r i d i n g t h e r i s k of i n j u r y is much l o w e r than in t o w n , w h i l e for c a r s it is t h e o t h e r way r o u n d . T h i s i n d i c a t e s ... that T W M V s [i.e., TMO-Uheeled ttotor Vehicles, or PTUsl a r e not in t h e m s e l v e s s p e c i a l l y d a n g e r o u s , but t h a t i n j u r i e s a r i s e m o r e t h r o u g h i n t e r a c t i o n w i t h o t h e r t r a f f i c . "
I n d e e d , o n e of W i n t e r ' s four " p r i n c i p a l r e c o m m e n d a t i o n s " w h i c h s t e m m e d from h i s a n a l y s i s of s t a t i s t i c s r e l a t i n g to m o t o r c y c l i n g w a s : " N o t i n g t h e s u b s t a n t i a l a m o u n t of r i d e r c a s u a l t i e s from T W M V - C a r e n c o u n t e r s , to p r e s s DTp [the Departterit of 7r aiisportl to find w a y s of i m p r o v i n g car d r i v e r c o n d u c t t o w a r d s T W M V s ..." iibid., p. 4 3 ) .
C o n s i d e r i n g s u c h a d m i s s i b l e i n d i c a t i o n s of d r i v e r e r r o r in PTW a c c i d e n t c a u s a l i t y it is s u r p r i s i n g that no r e s e a r c h in t h e f i e l d h a s as yet a d e q u a t e l y c o n t e m p l a t e d or i n v e s t i g a t e d t h e r o l e of t h e s o c i a l p s y c h o l o g y w h i c h e x i s t s on t h e r o a d and t h e d e c i s i o n - m a k i n g p r o c e s s of t h e m o t o r i s t . As M c F a r l a n d ( 1 9 6 8 , p . 7 2 ) h a s p o i n t e d o u t , " W h a t e v e r is d o n e on t h e part of t h e d e s i g n e r s and m a n u f a c t u r e r s of m o t o r v e h i c l e s , as well as in t h e d e s i g n of u r b a n and rural h i g h w a y s , t h e d r i v e r will c o n t i n u e to be c a l l e d u p o n to p l a y an i n c r e a s i n g l y a c t i v e r o l e . " A d r i v e r / r i d e r m u s t "... be c a p a b l e and w i l l i n g to t a k e c e r t a i n p r e v e n t i v e m e a s u r e s s u c h as o b e y i n g the s i g n a l s and s t o p l i g h t s as well as d r i v i n g w i t h i n h i s u s e f u l f i e l d of v i e w in o r d e r to a v o i d o n c o m i n g v e h i c l e s . He must a n t i c i p a t e and e x e r t c a u t i o n for c o p i n g w i t h u n e x p e c t e d e v e n t s . A n y t h i n g w h i c h will i n f l u e n c e a t t e n t i o n , or p o s s i b l e a w a r e n e s s of i m p e n d i n g d a n g e r s , will o b v i o u s l y c o n t r i b u t e to t h e p o s s i b i l i t y of b e c o m i n g i n v o l v e d in an a c c i d e n t " (ibid., p. 7 2 ) . M c F a r l a n d (p. 7 8 ) a l s o a r g u e d that "... a c c i d e n t s r e s u l t f r o m i n t e r a c t i o n b e t w e e n t h e c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s of the d r i v e r , t h o s e of t h e v e h i c l e and t h o s e of t h e e n v i r o n m e n t . " S i m i l a r l y , K n a p p e r and C r o p l e y ( 1 9 8 0 ) h a v e c a l l e d for an a p p r o a c h to r o a d s a f e t y w h i c h e m p h a s i s e s s o c i a l and p s y c h o l o g i c a l f a c t o r s : "... e v e n w h e n p e o p l e are i s o l a t e d in the a n o n y m i t y of t h e i r c a r s , s o c i a l n o r m s t h a t are s h a r e d w i t h o t h e r d r i v e r s s t i l l g o v e r n much of t h e i r b e h a v i o u r . ... F u r t h e r m o r e , d r i v e r s b r i n g w i t h t h e m to the d r i v i n g s i t u a t i o n a w h o l e set of a t t i t u d e s , v a l u e s and p r e c o n c e p t i o n s w h i c h stem f r o m t h e i r p r e v i o u s e x p e r i e n c e in t h e s o c i a l s y s t e m at l a r g e , and are not part of t h e o b j e c t i v e e n v i r o n m e n t at a l l " i ibid. , p . 4 1 8 ) . W i t h i n t h e c r i t i c a l r e q u i r e m e n t s of s a f e d r i v i n g / r i d i n g and t h e v a r i o u s i n t e r a c t i o n s w h i c h m u s t u n d e r l i e a c c i d e n t c a u s a t i o n , o b v i o u s i m p o r t a n c e must be a t t r i b u t e d to t h e d r i v e r ' s / r i d e r s d e c i s i o n - m a k i n g m e c h a n i s m . N e w s o m e ( 1 9 7 5 , p . 1) h a s a r g u e d that a l t h o u g h l i t t l e is k n o w n of t h i s m e c h a n i s m and its r o l e in t h e p r o c e s s of d r i v i n g a c a r , "... a s i z e a b l e p r o p o r t i o n of a u t o m o b i l e a c c i d e n t s that o c c u r do so b e c a u s e of a w r o n g d e c i s i o n m a d e by an i n v o l v e d d r i v e r . " Road a c c i d e n t s c a u s e d by f a u l t y d e c i s i o n s must o c c u r e i t h e r b e c a u s e t h e i n f o r m a t i o n w h i c h is c v a i l a b l e to t h e d r i v e r / r i d e r is i n s u f f i c i e n t to a l l o w d e c i s i o n s that a r e a p p r o p r i a t e for the s i t u a t i o n , or b e c a u s e t h e a v a i l a b l e i n f o r m a t i o n , a l t h o u g h s u f f i c i e n t , is u s e d i n c o r r e c t l y in d e t e r m i n i n g t h e a c t i o n w h i c h is e x e c u t e d . W i t h r e g a r d t o d r i v e r / r i d e r e r r o r s p e c i f i c a l l y in m u l t i - v e h i c 1 e a c c i d e n t s , H o w e l l s et al.
( 1 9 8 0 ) c o n s i d e r e d a d e c i s i o n to be c h a r a c t e r i s e d by t h r e e p r o b l e m a s p e c t s : p e r c e p t u a l - c o m p u t a t i o n a l f a c t o r s w h i c h a r e b a s e d on t h e i d e a that t h e d r i v e r / r i d e r must a c c u r a t e l y p e r c e i v e t h e p r e s e n c e , s p e e d and d i s t a n c e of t h e o t h e r v e h i c l e ; d r i v e r / r i d e r k n o w l e d g e of t h e o p e r a t i n g c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s of the o t h e r v e h i c l e ; and p e r s o n a l i t y f a c t o r s such as t h e r i s k t a k i n g p r o p e n s i t y of t h e d r i v e r / r i d e r .
It can t h u s be s e e n that i n t e r a c t i o n and d e c i s i o n - m a k i n g p r o c e s s e s must c o n t r i b u t e c o n s i d e r a b l y to the d r i v i n g p r o c e s s -- and h e n c e r e p r e s e n t f a c t o r s w h i c h m u s t be u n d e r s t o o d in t e r m s of t h e i r c o n t r i b u t i o n to d r i v e r e r r o r . H o w e v e r , r e s e a r c h on o t h e r v e h i c l e d r i v e r e r r o r in r e l a t i o n to PTW a c c i d e n t c a u s a l i t y h a s b e e n l a c k i n g . In e s s e n c e , t h e o n l y PTW s a f e t y r e s e a r c h in w h i c h t h e i n v o l v e m e n t of t h e m o t o r i s t is r e c o g n i s e d h a s b e e n w o r k c a r r i e d out on t h e
c o n s p i c u i t y of P T W ' s and t h e i r r i d e r s . T h e b a s i s of s u c h r e s e a r c h w a s t h e u n d e r s t a n d i n g t h a t m a n y PTW a c c i d e n t s i n v o l v e t h e s i t u a t i o n in w h i c h a car e i t h e r c r o s s e s or e n t e r s t h e p a t h of an o n c o m i n g P T W . H o w e v e r , t h e g e n e r a l a r g u m e n t of s u c h r e p o r t s is t h a t t h e car d r i v e r must fail to s e e t h e m o t o r c y c l i s t p r i o r to t h e c o l l i s i o n and so t h e n e c e s s a r y a p p r o a c h to t h e p r o b l e m must be that of d e v e l o p i n g c o n s p i c u i t y a i d s w o r n by t h e r i d e r or a t t a c h e d to t h e PTW ( e . g . , S t r o u d e^ al., 1 9 8 0 ; O l s o n et al., 1 9 8 1 ) . H e n c e , in s u c h w o r k t h e r o l e of t h e m o t o r i s t w a s s e e n to be p a s s i v e in n a t u r e -- i . e . , h e / s h e s i m p l y d o e s not s e e a PTW and so t h e m o t o r c y c l i s t must b e c o m e m o r e c o n s p i c u o u s . A g r e a t deal of w o r k e m p l o y i n g s u c h a r a t i o n a l e e x i s t s . L i t t l e , or n o , a t t e n t i o n h a s b e e n g i v e n to t h e fact t h a t t h e car d r i v e r is m a k i n g d e c i s i o n s w h i c h r e s u l t in i n a p p r o p r i a t e b e h a v i o u r ( e . g . , p e r h a p s a lack of a d e q u a t e s u r v e i l l a n c e ) in t h e v i c i n i t y of a P T W . In a d d i t i o n to t h i s c r i t i c i s m of t h e c o n s p i c u i t y - p r o b l e m ' r e s e a r c h is t h e fact t h a t a l t h o u g h it h a s c e n t r e d on t h e p r o b l e m of f a i l i n g to d e t e c t a PTW and i t s r i d e r , m u c h of t h e f i n d i n g s h a v e a c t u a l l y i n d i c a t e d that t h e i n a p p r o p r i a t e d r i v e r b e h a v i o u r o c c u r r e d a f t e r d e t e c t i o n had t a k e n p l a c e .
For e x a m p l e , O l s o n et al. ( 1 9 8 1 ) e m p l o y e d a gap a c c e p t a n c e m e a s u r e in an i n v e s t i g a t i o n of t h e e f f e c t s of m o t o r c y c l e / m o t o r c y c l i s t c o n s p i c u i t y e n h a n c e m e n t on d r i v e r b e h a v i o u r . A gap w a s c r e a t e d in t h e t r a f f i c s t r e a m b e t w e e n a 'lead v e h c i c l e ' (a c a r ) and a 'test v e h i c l e '
(a m o t o r c y c l e ) so t h a t at i n t e r s e c t i o n s t h e d r i v e r s of ' s u b j e c t v e h i c l e s ' (who w e r e u n a w a r e t h a t t h e y w e r e b e i n g o b s e r v e d or t a k i n g part in an e x p e r i m e n t ) c o u l d e i t h e r ' a c c e p t ' t h e g a p , bv m e r g i n g w i t h or c r o s s i n g t h e t r a f f i c s t r e a m i n f r o n t of the m o t o r c y c l e , or r e j e c t ' t h e gap by r e m a i n i n g s t a t i o n a r y and w a i t i n g for a l a r g e r and s a f e r b r e a k in t h e t r a f f i c .
T h r e e t y p e s of j u n c t i o n m a n o e u v r e by t h e s u b j e c t v e h i c l e w e r e c o n s i d e r e d : w h e r e a m o t o r i s t had to t u r n left out of a s i d e road in o r d e r to d r i v e on to a m a i n r o a d and t r a v e l in f r o n t of a m o t o r c y c l e w h i c h w a s a l r e a d y t r a v e l l i n g d o w n t h e m a i n r o a d ; w h e r e a car d r i v e r had to c r o s s t h e p a t h of an o n c o m i n g m o t o r c y c l e to t u r n r i g h t and off t h e m a i n r o a d a l o n g w h i c h t h e m o t o r c y c l e was t r a v e l l i n g ; w h e r e a car d r i v e r had to c r o s s t h e p a t h of an o n c o m i n g m o t o r c y c l e in o r d e r to go s t r a i g h t a h e a d at c r o s s - r o a d s , (The O l s o n et al. s t u d y took p l a c e in t h e U n i t e d S t a t e s and so t h e r i g h t / l e f t t u r n s h a v e b e e n a l t e r e d a c c o r d i n g l y ) . V a r i o u s m e a n s of i n c r e a s i n g c o n s p i c u i t y w e r e d e v e l o p e d ( e . g . , a m o t o r c y c l e w a s f i t t e d w i t h a f l u o r e s c e n t f a i r i n g or w i t h a m o d u l a t i n g h e a d - l a m p , or t h e r i d e r w o r e a f l u o r e s c e n t v e s t or a f l u o r e s c e n t h e l m e t c o v e r ) and w e r e t e s t e d by o b s e r v i n g t h e gap a c c e p t a n c e b e h a v i o u r of d r i v e r s ' for e a c h c o n d i t i o n . T w o p r i n c i p l e f i n d i n g s w e r e of p r e s e n t r e l e v a n c e . T h e f i r s t w a s t h a t t h e p r o b a b i l i t y of d r i v e r s a c c e p t i n g s m a l l g a p s (and h e n c e e x h i b i t n g l e s s s a f e b e h a v i o u r by v i o l a t i n g t h e m o t o r c y c l e ' s r i g h t - o f - w a y ) w a s s i g n i f i c a n t l y g r e a t e r for t h e t w o m a n o e u v r e s w h e r e t h e car d r i v e r p a s s e d a c r o s s t h e p a t h of t h e m o t o r c y c l e r a t h e r t h a n p u l l e d in f r o n t of it to t r a v e l a l o n g t h e s a m e r o a d . (Dlson et al. (p. 2 4 2 ) s t a t e d t h a t "Why t h e d r i v e r s b e h a v e d m o r e c a u t i o u s l y on t h i s m a n e u v e r t h a n on
the o t h e r two is not c l e a r , a l t h o u g h it may a r i s e from t h e fact that t h i s m a n e u v e r p l a c e s o n e in t h e p a t h of an a p p r o a c h i n g v e h i c l e m u c h l o n g e r t h a n t h e o t h e r s . "
S e c o n d l y , w h e n d i s c u s s i n g t h e i r f i n d i n g s in r e l a t i o n to m e a n s for i m p r o v i n g c o n s p i c u i t y as a m e t h o d of m o d i f y i n g t h e b e h a v i o u r of car d r i v e r s , O l s o n et al. (p. 2 4 7 ) s t a t e d that "High v i s i b i l i t y m a t e r i a l s seem q u i t e e f f e c t i v e ... but w o r k b e t t e r when w o r n by t h e r i d e r t h a n w h e n f i t t e d to the b i k e .
T h e l a t t e r f i n d i n g is s o m e w h a t s u r p r i s i n g . In the o p i n i o n of t h e i n v e s t i g a t o r s , t h e f l u o r e s c e n t f a i r i n g t r e a t m e n t w a s a m o r e e f f e c t i v e a t t e n t i o n - g e t t e r t h a n t h e f l u o r e s c e n t vest or h e l m e t c o v e r . Yet t h e f i e l d test d a t a i n d i c a t e t h e o p p o s i t e ... H o w e v e r , it is not c l e a r why t h e r e s u l t s c a m e a b o u t . O n e p o s s i b l e e x p l a n a t i o n is that e f f e c t i v e n e s s is i m p r o v e d by h e i g h t a b o v e t h e r o a d . A n o t h e r is that by e m p h a s i z i n g t h e r i d e r , s p e e d - s p a c i n g j u d g m e n t s a r e f a c i l i t a t e d . T h i s m i g h t h a p p e n b e c a u s e a p p a r e n t s i z e is an i m p o r t a n t d i s t a n c e c u e . H o w e v e r , it is b a s e d on k n o w l e d g e of a c t u a l s i z e . Most d r i v e r s ' k n o w l e s s a b o u t t h e s i z e of m o t o r c y c l e s , e s p e c i a l l y m o t o r c y c l e f a i r i n g s , t h a n t h e y do a b o u t p e o p l e . " H e n c e , in o r d e r to e x p l a i n b o t h of t h e a b o v e f i n d i n g s , O l s o n et al. m o v e d away from an i n t e r p r e t a t i o n in t e r m s of a p r o b l e m of s e e i n g t h e m o t o r c y c l e and r i d e r in t h e f i r s t i n s t a n c e and m o v e d t o w a r d an i n t e r p r e t a t i o n in t e r m s of i n a p p r o p r i a t e d e c i s i o n m a k i n g o n c e d e t e c t i o n had a c t u a l l y t a k e n p l a c e . F u r t h e r m o r e , in d o i n g t h i s O l s o n et al. h a v e e m p h a s i s e d the r o l e of a c c u r a t e k n o w l e d g e in m a k i n g d e c i s i o n s / j u d g e m e n t s and h a v e s u g g e s t e d that k n o w l e d g e of c e r t a i n a s p e c t s of m o t o r c y c l e s is l i k e l y to be l a c k i n g in c e r t a i n m o t o r i s t s . A l l i n a l l , t h e need has b e c o m e a p p a r e n t to c o n s i d e r the d e c i s i o n -m a k i n g p r o c e s s of t h e o t h e r v e h i c l e d r i v e r w h i c h -may c o n t r i b u t e to lack of d e t e c t i o n of m o t o r c y c l e s , but a l s o t h e d e c i s i o n - m a k i n g p r o c e s s e s w h i c h c o n t r i b u t e to a f a i l u r e in a c t i n g a p p r o p r i a t e l y in the v i c i n t i y of a PTW o n c e d e t e c t i o n h a s t a k e n p l a c e . In t h i s r e s p e c t , t h e r e f o r e , the m o t o r i s t must be c o n s i d e r e d a c t i v e r a t h e r t h a n m e r e l y as t h e p a s s i v e ' v i c t i m ' . It was s u c h a r e a l i s a t i o n that h a s b e e n l a r g e l y l a c k i n g in t h e c o n s p i c u i t y - r e l a t e d r e s e a r c h c o n d u c t e d to d a t e . W i g a n ( 1 9 7 6 , p. 9 9 ) h a s a p p e a r e d to s h a r e such m i s g i v i n g s of t h e
'conpsi cui t y - p r o b l e m ' a c c o u n t of t h e mul ti-^vehi cl e PTW a c c i d e n t p r o b l e m and h a s s u m m a r i s e d t h e s i t u a t i o n c o n c i s e l y , "From a p a r t i c i p a n t v i e w p o i n t , c o n s p i c u i t y m e a s u r e s h a v e c o n f l i c t i n g e f f e c t s , T h e u s e of b r i g h t c l o t h i n g , h e a d l i g h t s , h e l m e t and s i d e r e f l e c t i o n u n d o u b t e d l y h e l p s v i s i b i l i t y , but t h e e f f e c t s a r e o f t e n m a r g i n a l or u n d e t e c t a b l e in day to day d r i v i n g [of a PTWi, d u e to t h e lack of a t t e n t i o n p a i d to m o t o r c y c l e s by most c a r , g o o d s and PSV d r i v e r s , V i s i b i l i t y and a t t e n t i o n c a p t u r e h a v e q u i t e d i f f e r e n t a i m s and p r o b l e m s , and w h i l e e f f o r t s h a v e been m a a e to m a k e t h e m o t o r c y c l i s t m o r e v i s i b l e , l i t t l e c o m p a r a b l e e n e r g y h a s b e e n s p e n t on e d u c a t i n g d r i v e r s to t a k e a c t i v e c o g n i s a n c e of t w o w h e e l e d v e h i c l e s , or to m a k e m o r e r e a l i s t i c e s t i m a t e s of d r i v i n g s p e e d s w h e n m o v i n g out from a t u r n i n g or w h e n o v e r t a k i n g , or i n d e e d in y i e l d i n g p r i o r i t y to t h e smal 1 er vehi cl e s . "
"The central issue is one of recognition and response as opposed to visibility of the two wheeler: bridging the gap from visibility to appropriate conscious reaction and judgement is the most fruitful area for safety improvements in this area. General experiments on conspicuity have reinforced this view, as the improved driver response to more visible two wheelers has been far less than would be expected if pure conspicuity were the deciding factor" (Wigan, 1976, p. 1 0 8 ) .
The need was therefore apparent to gain greater understanding of other vehicle driver culpability and to approach the problem by considering the culpable motorist as an active component in the system in which some sort of breakdown is occurring. To initiate such directives, two studies were conducted in order to gain insight into possible contributing factors to driver error in relation to PTW accident causation. These studies are reported below.
2 STUDY 1: M o t o r c y c l i s t s ' O p i n i o n s of Motorist Culpability
2.1 O b j e c t i v e s
Despite the existence of accident data which indicated the need for research on other road users in relation to PTW safety, the opinions of PTW operators were considered necessary to indicate whether they themselves felt a need for improved driver behaviour as an accident countermeasure, and, if so, whether the potential effectiveness of such a measure was considered to be high in comparison with other possible countermeasures. Of primary importance, however, was determining the way in which motorcyclists interpreted other vehicle driver error and how they felt it should be improved (should they actually consider driver culpability to be a major cause of PTW accidents and therefore an important area to be countered) so that insight into the nature of this error might be offered.
In accordance with such o b j e c t i v e s , a survey of motorcyclists' attitudes to various possible ways of countering PTW accidents was undertaken.
2.2 The Preventive Countermeasures Under Assessment
Preliminary small-scale qualitative work was undertaken to identify the range of possible a t t i t u d e s , opinions and issues that would be relevant for this examination. This unstructured approach incorporated individual depth interviews of five motorcyclists (who were previously unknown to the authors and who also drove cars) and served both to indicate how these persons interpreted driver culpability and to give clearer ideas about the phraseology used in this respect. Two possible ways of improving driver behaviour were found to be covered by combining the views of these motorcyclists. They were found to refer to the way in which drivers perceive PTWs and their r i d e r s , and the level of motorists' knowledge about these vehicles.
A study of motorcyclists' attitudes to various accident countermeasures has been undertaken with Australian motorcyclists
p r e v e n t i v e c o u n t e r m e a s u r e s and a s k e d t h e r e s p o n d e n t s to r a n k o r d e r them in t e r m s of t h e i r p e r c e i v e d p o t e n t i a l . H o w e v e r , no r e f e r e n c e to d r i v e r c u l p a b i l i t y w a s g i v e n by W a r d l e . It w a s t h e r e f o r e d e c i d e d to b a s i c a l l y r e p e a t t h e W a r d l e s t u d y but to a l s o i n t r o d u c e t h e t w o a s p e c t s of d r i v e r i m p r o v e m e n t as i n d i c a t e d in t h e i n - d e p t h i n t e r v i e w s . T h e i m p r o v e m e n t in d r i v e r b e h a v i o u r as felt n e c e s s a r y by t h e m o t o r c y c l i s t s at t h e q u a l i t a t i v e s t a g e w e r e e x p r e s s e d in t h e s t r u c t u r e d q u e s t i o n n a i r e used in t h e m a i n s u r v e y a s : (i) I m p r o v e m e n t of car d r i v e r a w a r e n e s s in t e r m s of g r e a t e r k n o w l e d g e of t h e c o m p l e x i t i e s of m o t o r c y c l i n g and r i d e r v u l n e r a b i l i t y in c e r t a i n c o n d i t i o n s ; (ii) I m p r o v e m e n t of car d r i v e r a w a r e n e s s in t e r m s of g r e a t e r r e s p e c t for m o t o r c y c l i s t s . T h e A u s t r a l i a n s t u d y g a v e ten p o s s i b l e c o u n t e r m e a s u r e s to be r a n k e d , and t h e top six as r e p o r t e d by W a r d l e w e r e e m p l o y e d in t h e p r e s e n t i n v e s t i g a t i o n . T h e s e w e r e : r i d e r t r a i n i n g , d a y t i m e u s e of h e a d l i g h t and t a i l - l i g h t , r e s t r i c t i o n of s i z e of m a c h i n e for i n e x p e r i e n c e d r i d e r s , h i g h v i s i b i l i t y j a c k e t s , c o m p u l s o r y w h i t e h e l m e t , and i n c r e a s e d a u d i b i l i t y of t h e h o r n . In a d d i t i o n to t h e s e , t h e p o s s i b l e c o u n t e r m e a s u r e of " a n t i - 1 o c k i n g b r a k e s on all m o t o r c y c l e s " w a s i n c l u d e d , s i n c e W a r d l e r e p o r t e d t h i s as b e i n g a c o m m o n a d d i t i o n a l s u g g e s t i o n c o m i n g from t h e m o t o r c y c l i s t s whom s h e s u r v e y e d . W a r d l e a l s o s u g g e s t e d that r e f e r e n c e to a 'white h e l m e t ' m i g h t h a v e b e e n a m b i g u o u s in her s u r v e y and that the term "high v i s i b i l i t y " s h o u l d h a v e b e e n u s e d . T h i s t e r m w a s t h e r e f o r e e m p l o y e d in t h e p r e s e n t s t u d y . A l s o , t h e r e s t r i c t i o n of m o t o r c y c l e e n g i n e c a p a c i t y w a s s t a t e d as 125 cc ( i . e . , t h e p r e s e n t s i t u a t i o n in G r e a t B r i t a i n ) to m a k e it m o r e s p e c i f i c . W i t h t h e t w o car d r i v e r ' s u g g e s t i o n s t h i s t h e r e f o r e m a d e n i n e c o u n t e r m e a s u r e s in a l l . 2.3 Q u e s t i o n n a i r e ^ and P r o c e d u r e S t r e e t i n t e r v i e w s of t h e m o t o r c y c l i s t s took p l a c e , e s s e n t i a l l y in a r e a s of c i t y c e n t r e s w h e r e m o t o r c y c l i s t s t e n d e d to a c c u m u l a t e t h r o u g h t h e e x i s t e n c e of a d e s i g n a t e d area on w h i c h P T W s w e r e a b l e to p a r k . S a m p l i n g took p l a c e on w e e k d a y s a n d , w i t h i n r e a s o n , a n y o n e p a r k i n g , or r e t u r n i n g to a p a r k e d P T W , w a s a p p r o a c h e d . B r i e f d e t a i l s of t h e e x t e n t of the r e s p o n d e n t s m o t o r c y c l i n g e x p e r i e n c e and t y p e of PTW r i d d e n w e r e t a k e n and t h e r e s p o n d e n t s w e r e i n f o r m e d that t h e p u r p o s e of the s u r v e y w a s to g a i n an i n d i c a t i o n of m o t o r c y c l i s t s ' a t t i t u d e s to s o m e p o s s i b l e w a y s of s t o p p i n g m o t o r c y c l e a c c i d e n t s as p r e v i o u s l y s u g g e s t e d by o t h e r m o t o r c y c l i s t s . The list of n i n e c o u n t e r m e a s u r e s w a s t h e n s h o w n to the r e s p o n d e n t , w h o w a s a s k e d w h e t h e r h e / s h e w a s e i t h e r in f a v o u r or not in f a v o u r of e a c h s u g g e s t i o n in t u r n . T h e m a i n i n t e n t i o n of t h i s p h a s e w a s to e n s u r e that r e s p o n d e n t s w e r e a w a r e of e x a c t l y what w a s c o n t a i n e d w i t h i n t h e list b e f o r e any a t t e m p t s to r a n k o r d e r t h e m a t e r i a l w e r e m a d e . T h e s a m e list w a s then p r e s e n t e d a g a i n so that such r a n k o r d e r i n g in t e r m s of p o t e n t i a l e f f e c t i v e n e s s c o u l d t a k e p l a c e .
T h e o r d e r of t h e c o u n t e r m e a s u r e s w a s r a n d o m l y a s s i g n e d and in r e v e r s e o r d e r in half of t h e q u e s t i o n n a i r e s a d m i n i s t e r e d .
2.4 Subjects
The structured questionnaire was administered to 209 PTW operators, samples from Oxfordshire (n = 73) , Bedfordshire (n = 6 2 ) , Northamptonshire
(n=41), Buckinghamshire (n=18) and Devonshire (n=15) being taken. Of this sample, 73.2 percent had been riding a PTW for over 18 months, 83 percent reported operating their PTW every day during the 'good weather months' (which were defined as between April and October), and 44 percent of the motorcyclists also drove a car.
Details of the type and size of PTW operated by the are given in Table 2.4.1 and Table 2.4.2 respectively.
209 respondents
Table 2.4.1 Absolute and Relative Frequencies of Type of PTW Ridden by the Respondents of Study 1.
Type of PTW Ridden
MOPED
Absolute Frequency Relative Frequency (7.)
27 12.9
MOTOR SCOOTER
11
MOTORCYCLE
171
81.8Total
209
100.0Table 2.4.2 Absolute and Relative Frequencies of Engine Capacity of PTW Ridden by Respondents of Study 1.
Engine Capacity of PTW Absolute Frequency
30 <51 cc 51-150 cc 151-250 cc 251-500 cc >500 cc Total 66 26 26 61 209 Relative Frequency (7.) 14,4 31.6 12.4 12.4 29,2 100.0 2.5 Results
The only proposed countermeasure with which 1007. of the sample were in favour was that of the itproveterit of car driver aMareriess in teras of greater respect for aotoreye 11sts. N e x t , with a r e l a t i v e frequency of 98.17., came itprovetent of car driver anareness in terms of greater knoiiledge of the couplexitles of totorcycling and rider vulnerability in certain condit ions. Rider training was the countermeasure with which riders were third most often in favour, obtaining a relative frequency of 91.97..
Of more importance was the potential e f f e c t i v e n e s s of the nine c o u n t e r m e a s u r e s which the m o t o r c y c l i s t s considered such p r o p o s a l s to h a v e . The results of this second and main aspect of the study are gi ven i n Table 2.5.1.
Table 2.5.1 Complete Composite Ranking for (A) The Set of 9 Possible M o t o r c y c l e Accident P r e v e n t i v e C o u n t e r m e a s u r e s Judged by 209 M o t o r c y c l i s t s and (B) As Found for 74 M o t o r c y c l i s t s by Wardle ( 1 9 7 6 ) . (A rank of 1 s i g n i f i e s the most
potentially e f f e c t i v e ) . Rank of Potential E f f e c t i v e n e s s C o u n t e r m e a s u r e A B Present Wardle Study Study
1 Improvement of car driver a w a r e n e s s in terms of greater knowledge of the c o m p l e x i t i e s of motorcycling and rider vulnerability in certain c o n d i t i o n s 4 5 6 7 8 9 Rider training
Improvement of car driver a w a r e n e s s in terms of greater respect for m o t o r c y c l i s t s
Daytime use of headlight and tail-light
Restriction of size of machine to 125 cc for inexperienced riders
Anti-lockinq brakes on all m o t o r c y c l e s
High visibility jackets
Increased audibility of the horn
C o m p u l s o r y high visibility helmet
From the rank-order information obtained it was p o s s i b l e to d e t e r m i n e the proportion of o c c a s i o n s that a particular c o u n t e r m e a s u r e suggestion was ranked higher than a specific other c o u n t e r m e a s u r e suggestion (according to the estimation of p r o p o r t i o n s of c o m p a r a t i v e judgements (Guilford, 1 9 5 4 ) ) .
The proportion of occasions that itprovetent of car driver anareness
in terns of greater knonledge of the coap le)(it ies of aotor eye I mg and
rider vulnerability in certain conditions was judged to have greater
potential e f f e c t i v e n e s s than rider training was 0.52 (i.e., 527. of o c c a s i o n s ) . This was also the proportion with which rider training was preferred as having more potential effect than iaproveaent of ear driver at>iareness m teras of greater respect for aotorcyclists.
Iaproveaent of car driver a w a r e n e s s in teras of greater knowledge of the coaplexities of aotoreycling and rider vulnerability in certain
condit ions was ranked higher than 'improvement in respect' on 547. (0.54) of occasions.
The proportion of occasions that the iaproveaent of ear driver
anareness m teras of greater respect for aotoreye 1ists ( i . e . , r a n k
3) was preferred as having greater potential effectiveness than the
daytiae use of headlight and tail-light (i.e., rank 4) was 0.76.
2.6 Discussion
It can thus be seen in Table 2.5.1 that iaproveaent of car driver
attar eness in teras of greater knonledge of the complexities of
aotoreycling and rider vulnerability m certain condit ions o b t a i n e d
the composite rank of 1, and was therefore perceived as having more potential effect in reducing PTW accidents than rider training, which obtained the top ranking in the Wardle study. F u r t h e r m o r e , of
the nine countermeasure suggestions provided, the motorcyclists sampled felt that if car drivers had more respect for the riders of PTWs then this would be the third most potentially effective measure for preventing PTW accidents.
If one considers the proportions of occasions that the top three ranked countermeasures were preferred over each other, and the proportion for the third rank over the fourth rank, it can be seen that little distinction existed between the perceived merits of only the three highest ranked countermeasures. Whilst there was a 50/50 split in preference amongst the three highest ranked c o u n t e r m e a s u r e s , there was an 80/20 split for rank 3 over rank 4. The fourth rank and below were consistently and markedly considered to be of less potential effectiveness. H e n c e , direct attempts to improve road user behaviour, be it car driver or PTW operator, represent the major areas of worthwhile countermeasure development as perceived by these motorcyclists.
F u r t h e r m o r e , that an all-round improvement in road user behaviour i.e., novice riders as well as car drivers -- was favoured to about the same extent also indicates that the respondents were not merely 'passing the buck' when ranking improvements in driver awareness high. Rather, it would seem to suggest that they take their own role in road safety seriously, but also feel strongly about the behaviour of motorists in relation to accident causality.
It is interesting to note from Table 2.5,1 that if one excludes the two 'driver awareness' proposals and the additional 'anti-locking brakes' suggestion, then the rank order obtained for Wardle's countermeasures in the present study is the same as obtained in the previous survey with the exception that the two lowest ranks are the other way round. This would seem to add support to the validity of the findings, but more importantly it shows how misleading Wardle's findings were as a direct result of her exclusion of active attempts to reduce driver culpability.
For example, if one compares the two rankings of driver improvement with those countermeasures designed to enhance the conspicuity of PTWs
and t h e i r r i d e r s , it i n d i c a t e s that t h e m o t o r c y c l i s t s s u r v e y e d p e r c e i v e d r i v e r c u l p a b i l i t y as s t e m m i n g from lack of k n o w l e d g e and t h r o u g h lack of r e s p e c t than p u r e l y t h r o u g h 'lack of s e e i n g ' . Such e r r o r r e p r e s e n t s a c t i v e d r i v e r b e h a v i o u r r a t h e r than m e r e l y r e p r e s e n t i n g t h e r e s u l t of a m o t o r i s t b e i n g s u b j e c t e d to a c o l l i s i o n w i t h a P T W b e c a u s e t h e P T W w a s not v i s i b l e e n o u g h ( i . e . , " p a s s i v e " d r i v e r b e h a v i o u r ) . For i n s t a n c e , t h e p r o p o r t i o n of o c c a s i o n s that
iaproveaent of car driver awareness in teras of greater knoMledge of the COaplexities of aotoreycling and rider vulnerability in certain
condit ions w a s p r e f e r r e d as h a v i n g m o r e p o t e n t i a l e f f e c t i v e n e s s than the dayt iae use of head Iight and tail-light was 0.77; whilst on 84 percent of occasions the iaproveaent of car driver ai-iareness in teras of greater respect for aotoreye 1 ists was judged superior to
the wearing of high visibility jackets.
O n e must a c c e p t , h o w e v e r , that t h e s a m p l e s i z e w a s r e l a t i v e l y small ( a l t h o u g h not n e a r l y as r e d u c e d as that used by W a r d l e ) , and t h e s a m p l i n g t e c h n i q u e w a s l i k e l y to g e n e r a t e r e s p o n s e s from only t h o s e r i d e r s w h o w e r e j o u r n e y i n g into a town c e n t r e d u r i n g t h e week -- and p a r t i c u l a r l y d u r i n g t h e i r lunch b r e a k .
One c a n c o m p a r e t h e r e l a t i v e f r e q u e n c i e s of m o p e d , s c o o t e r and m o t o r c y c l e o p e r a t o r s o b t a i n e d in t h e p r e s e n t s t u d y w i t h t h o s e o b t a i n e d in a l a r g e r - s c a l e p o s t a l s u r v e y of m o t o r c y c l i s t s by H o b b s et al.
( 1 9 8 3 ) . From i n f o r m a t i o n on 2 , 0 0 0 r e g i s t e r e d PTW k e e p e r s s u p p l i e d by t h e D V L C , H o b b s et al. s e l e c t e d a r e p r e s e n t a t i v e s a m p l e from all t h e d a t a r e c o r d s for B r i t a i n on an equal i n t e r v a l b a s i s . T h i s l a t t e r m e t h o d o l o g y o b t a i n e d r e l a t i v e f r e q u e n c i e s of 2 4 . 2 p e r c e n t m o p e d o p e r a t o r s , 3.4 p e r c e n t m o t o r s c o o t e r o p e r a t o r s , and 7 2 . 2 p e r c e n t m o t o r c y c l e o p e r a t o r s . H e n c e , t h e s e p r o p o r t i o n s a r e c o m p a r a b l e w i t h t h o s e o b t a i n e d in t h e p r e s e n t s t u d y (see T a b l e 2 . 4 . 1 ) , a l t h o u g h a s l i g h t l y h i g h e r n u m b e r of m o t o r c y c l e s to t h e d e c r e m e n t of t h e moped is a p p a r e n t in t h e l a t t e r . F u r t h e r m o r e , t h e e n g i n e s i z e for P T W s used in B r i t a i n in 1 9 8 2 as reported in Transport Statisies Great Britain 1972-1982 is given o v e r l e a f in T a b l e 2 . 6 . 1 . If o n e c o m p a r e s t h e s e f i g u r e s with t h e f r e q u e n c i e s o b t a i n e d in t h e p r e s e n t s u r v e y (see T a b l e 2 . 4 . 2 ) , t h e o n l y m a j o r m i s r e p r e s e n t a t i o n would a p p e a r to be a lack of P T W s with e n g i n e c a p a c i t i e s of u n d e r 51 c c , and an o v e r r e p r e s e n t a t i o n of m o t o r c y c l e s over 5 0 0 c c . T h e fall in m o t o r c y c l e s in t h e 1 5 1 - 2 5 0 cc c a t e g o r y and t h e r i s e of t h o s e of 2 5 1 - 5 0 0 cc would be e x p e c t e d d u e to t h e e f f e c t of t h e 1981 T r a n s p o r t A c t ' s r e s t r i c t i o n of l e a r n e r s t o 125 cc m a c h i n e s or b e l o w . T h i s h a s r e s u l t e d in a d e c l i n e of u s e r s h i p in t h e 1 5 1 - 2 5 0 cc m a r k e t .
The g r e a t e r p r o p o r t i o n of r e s p o n d e n t s o w n i n g l a r g e P T W s d o e s not seem to q u e s t i o n t h e v a l i d i t y of t h e r e s u l t s o b t a i n e d , a l t h o u g h a m o r e a c c u r a t e r e p r e s e n t a t i o n of v e h i c l e t y p e and user would h a v e been d e s i r a b l e . W h i l s t no r e c o r d i n g of a g e w a s taken in t h i s s u r v e y , t h e r e was a d e f i n i t e t e n d e n c y for P T W s of 125 cc and b e l o w to b e l o n g to l e a r n e r r i d e r s . T h e i n t e n t i o n of t h i s e x e r c i s e w a s to a p p r o a c h t h e m o t o r c y c l i s t a s t h e ' e x p e r t ' w i t h r e g a r d to what g o e s on on t h e road in r e l a t i o n to PTW s a f e t y -- and e s p e c i a l l y with r e g a r d to d r i v e r c u l p a b i l i t y . T h e r e s p o n d e n t s o w n i n g and o p e r a t i n g l a r g e r P T W s would t h e r e f o r e h a v e been m o r e l i k e l y to be t h e e x p e r i e n c e d and m a t u r e r i d e r , with c o r r e s p o n d i n g l y g r e a t e r i n s i g h t into PTW r i d i n g .
Table 2.6.1 M o t o r c y c l e s , Motor Scooters and Mopeds Licensed in 1982 by
Engine Size. Source: Transport Statistics Great Britain 1972-1982, Table 2.17.
Engine Capacity of PTW Absolute Frequency Relative Frequency (Thousand) (7.) <51 cc 51-150 cc 151-250 cc 251-500 cc >500 cc All Vehicles 489 428 272 81 100 1,370
3 STUDY 2: The Influence of Motorcycling Experience on M o t o r i s t s ' Opinions and Knowledge.
3.1 Introduction to Objectives of Research
Study 1 indicated the significance which PTW operators attach to active driver behaviour in producing potential conflict or conflict situations involving a PTW (i.e., the term 'active' is employed to stress that information processing and decision making are leading to driver behaviour as an interactive p r o c e s s , and when these are for some reason inappropriate they are leading to driver e r r o r ) . Moreover, this behaviour was interpreted by such road users as stemming from either a lack of knowledge of the complexities of motorcycling and rider vulnerability and/or through a lack of respect for motorcyclists. No indication of a preference for one interpretation over the other was evident -- an almost 50/50 split being encountered in the number of times respondents ranked one above the other. Although all respondents were asked at the end of the interview if they felt that any other possible aspect of PTW accident prevention had not been covered in the questionnaire, no additional interpretation of driver culpability was given.
Such findings supported the construction of the following two possible contributing factors to inappropriate driver behaviour.
F i r s t , it was argued that a lack of knowledge about PTWs and of the complexities involved with riding a PTW for those motorists having no such experience could influence (or fail to influence) a motorists behaviour in potential conflict situations,
Secondly, it was argued that product-user stereotypes may exist, and that such distorted and incomplete information and experience may also affect the decision-making process and/or may lead to certain attitudes and, possibly, influence social interaction and hence behaviour. With regard to motorcyclists and motorcycling, such people and activity may be viewed in a 'negative' way by motorists who have neither had PTW experience or are not a close acquaintance of a
m o t o r c y c l i s t , resulting in a lack of 'social a w a r e n e s s ' towards m o t o r c y c l i s t s on the road, (The term "negative" here does not necessarily mean "anti"; r a t h e r , it is used primarily to describe inaccurate opinions and a reduced state of deliberation when compared with a socially a w a r e ' m o t o r i s t ) ,
The term "social a w a r e n e s s " (SA) will indeed be used in this report to refer to this possible p h e n o m e n o n , whilst the term "technical a w a r e n e s s " (TA) will apply to the former concept -- i,e,, representing the knowledge gained through motorcycling a c t i v i t e s .
The issue representing the basis of Study 2 was whether or not a reduced level of awareness (in terms of TA and/or SA) was evident in motorists without certain motorcycling e x p e r i e n c e .
3.2 Q u e s t i o n n a i r e ^ and Procedure
In accordance with the above r a t i o n a l e , the various categories of the motoring population were primarily:
(a) Motorists with present or past PTW operating e x p e r i e n c e ,
(b) Motorists with a close acquaintance who is a motorcyclist but no PTW operating e x p e r i e n c e .
(c) Motorists who have no PTW riding experience nor a close acquaintance who is a m o t o r c y c l i s t .
The criteria for group membership will not be discussed in detail here due to constraints on s p a c e , although greater consideration of the groups involved is given in Section 3.4.
A quota sampling technique was employed for the survey u n d e r t a k e n , attempts being made to match the groups in terras of a g e , sex and social class (as derived from the Government Statistical Service's C1 ass 1 f ie ation o f O cc up at i ons 19S0).
The questionnaire for the survey consisted primarily of (i) questions (direct and indirect) to investigate the r e s p o n d e n t s ' TA; (ii) opinion statements relating to m o t o r c y c l i s t s and motorcycling to which r e s p o n d e n t s were asked to state how strongly they either agreed or disagreed with a particular statement (i.e,, to get a measure of S A ) ; and (iii) a selection of descriptions of potential car-PTW conflict s i t u a t i o n s in which the behaviour of a 'culpable m o t o r i s t ' was described and which the r e s p o n d e n t s were asked to rate as either good driving b e h a v i o u r , acceptable driving b e h a v i o u r , a minor deviation from acceptable driving b e h a v i o u r , a moderately serious o f f e n c e , or a serious o f f e n c e ,
With regard to the TA i t e m s , attempts were made to consider the following 'complexities' involved with riding a PTW and knowledge of P T W s , This list was compiled after consulting a variety of motorcycling literature and viewing a Department of Transport film designed for use during the training of Ministry of Transport driving e x a m i n e r s .
(a) Did motorists appreciate the extent to which the PTWs encountered on the road are more powerful in terms of acceleration than their own v e h i c l e , so that m o t o r i s t s ' experience of acceleration may be unsuitable when planning a manoeuvre which may involve a PTW?
(b) In terms of engine capacity, what did motorists consider to be a 'small motorcycle'? (Possible implications here were t h a t , for e x a m p l e , the constant approach speed -- rather than the acceleration -- of some motorcycles may be underestimated when planning a manoeuvre which may involve a P T W ) .
(c) Were motorists as inaccurately obsessed as some road safety researchers (e.g., Plowden and Hillman, 1984) with the idea that it IS the larger P T W s , with their greater potential for speed, which are more dangerous on the road? (Thus, for example, implying the irresponsible behaviour, and/or lack of control of P T W s , by their riders as the major perceived causal f a c t o r ) .
(d) Did motorists appreciate that rapid and successful braking is generally harder to achieve for a motorcyclist than it is for a car driver?
(e) Did motorists appreciate how the braking performance of a PTW is reduced in wet conditions''
(f) Did motorists realise how handicapped PTWs become by various road surfaces and road conditions?
(g) Did motorists realise that a PTW travelling at speed (e.g., over 15 raph), despite its size and manoeuvrability in slow traffic, 15 less manoeuvrable and stable in taking evasive action than a car''
(h) Did motorists realise that it is essential that a motorcyclist makes no sudden alteration of course or speed when the PTW being operated is not directly upright (e.g.,when corneri ng)?
The opinion statements for obtaining indications of SA were obtained from two sources. 1) Preliminary unstructured individual depth interviews involving five motorists with present PTW operating e x p e r i e n c e , five motorists with no operating or pillion experience nor a close acquaintance who rides a PTW, and three motorists with no PTW operating experience but with a close acquaintance who rides a PTW. These motorists were previously unknown to the authors and were naive to the fundamental intentions of the exercise other than it being an initial exploratory approach prior to a programme of research on motorcycle safety. Topics (xplored in this manner included the motorist's views on how most fTW accidents are caused, what actions there should be to help amend ihe situation, what the motorist thought of m o t o r c y c l i s t s , believed the typical car driver to think of m o t o r c y c l i s t s , believed the reason for riding PTWs to b e , and in what ways car drivers differ from motorcyclists. 2) The second source of material was the PTW safety literature.
The potential conflict situations (PCSs) employed were descriptions of typical pre-multivehicle accident configurations as commonly referred to in the motorcycle literature. Some of these items were also used as indirect measures of TA if a particular aspect was not considered amenable to a more direct question.
An initial draft of the TA and PCS component of the questionnaire was completed by five driving instructors and examiners from the
Department of Transport Driving Establishment in order to ensure c o n s e n s u s of opinion and accuracy of the items.
The q u e s t i o n n a i r e was designed in order to try to conceal the fact that the central issue was purely one of PTW safety by placing many 'dummy' questions on other road safety matters in all s e c t i o n s . H o w e v e r , some of these additional items were also intended for analysis for c o m p a r a t i v e p u r p o s e s . These were in terms of whether there were any d i f f e r e n c e s between the groups with respect to 'technical a w a r e n e s s of car d r i v i n g ' , and also with respect to the p o s s i b i l i t y that a respondent who may have been found to be 'negative' towards m o t o r c y c l i s t s and motorcycling was similarly negative towards all other road u s e r s .
The entire q u e s t i o n n a i r e was therefore rather voluminous and so divided into two p a r t s . The first part (containing the 'knowledge' items) was completed by an interviewer while interviewing the respondent on the street. R e s p o n d e n t s were then requested to take away the second half of the q u e s t i o n n a i r e to complete by themselves in their own time and to return to Cranfield in the stamped addressed envelope p r o v i d e d .
3.3 Study H y p o t h e s e s
The two major hypotheses of interest in this investigation were:
1. M o t o r i s t s who also operate PTWs or have had operating e x p e r i e n c e will exhibit (i) greater TA, (li) greater SA, and (iii) will rate the behaviour of a culpable motorist as more s e r i o u s , in comparison with m o t o r i s t s without any form of motorcycling e x p e r i e n c e .
Since the data was m u l t i - v a r i a t e in n a t u r e , discriminant function analyses were to be performed. Hence this hypothesis can fundamentally be considered as stating that it is posssible to d i s c r i m i n a t e between these groups in their r e s p o n s e s to the three classes of i t e m s , and that the direction of this discrimination as indicated by relatively more a c c u r a t e / f a v o u r a b l e r e s p o n s e s or less a c c u r a t e / f a v o u r a b l e r e s p o n s e s will be as stated a b o v e ,
2. In terms of (i) amount of TA, (ii) amount of SA, and (iii) the rating of driver culpability as a serious o f f e n c e , having motorcycling experience produces greater discrimination with motorists without any form of motorcycling experience than with m o t o r i s t s having a close a c q u a i n t a n c e who is a m o t o r c y c l i s t . H o w e v e r , having a close a c q u a i n t a n c e who is a motorcyclist induces greater (i) TA, (ii) SA and (iii) ratings of s e r i o u s n e s s of driver behaviour in comparison with a motorist having no riding e x p e r i e n c e and no close acquaintance who rides a PTW.
The basic r a t i o n a l e for the second hypothesis was that a PTW o p e r a t o r , or e x - o p e r a t o r , would have both TA and SA, whilst m o t o r i s t s with a close a c q u a i n t a n c e who rides a PTW would only really have SA.
3.4 Group Assignment of M o t o r i s t s
It was considered that some persons having a close a c q u a i n t a n c e who operates a PTW would be likely to r i d e , or to have r i d d e n , pillion on such a v e h i c l e , thus p e r h a p s having some TA, whilst others in this group would not. It was therefore thought necessary to distinguish two sub-groups within this grouping on the basis of pillion experi ence.
S u b - g r o u p s were also defined for subjects who presently operate a PTW and those who have operated a PTW in the past. This enabled further e x p l o r a t i o n . A criterion of greater than 18 months operating e x p e r i e n c e (in addition to a certain minimum frequency of winter r i d i n g ) was incorporated to ensure that such subjects would reasonably be expected to have full TA.
H e n c e , the five major groups within the motoring population were as f o i l o w s :
GROUP 1: M o t o r i s t s with - no PTW operating experience
- no pillion experience
- no close acquaintance who rides a PTW
GROUP 2: M o t o r i s t s with - no PTW operating experience
- no pillion experience
- a close acquaintance who rides a PTW
GROUP 3: M o t o r i s t s with - no PTW operating experience
- pillion experience
- a close acquaintance who rides a PTW
GROUP 4; M o t o r i s t s with present PTW operating e x p e r i e n c e and who have
operated a PTW for greater than 18 m o n t h s .
GROUP 5: M o t o r i s t s with past PTW operating experience and who had
operated a PTW for greater than 18 m o n t h s .
3.5 Subjects
As with Study 1, surveying took the form of (initially) street interviews in B e d f o r d s h i r e , B u c k i n g h a m s h i r e , D e v o n s h i r e , N o r t h a m p t o n s h i r e and O x f o r d s h i r e . Eighty-seven percent of the sample were residing in these five c o u n t i e s .
The initial q u e s t i o n n a i r e was completed f o r , and the second part left w i t h , 216 m o t o r i s t s . Of t h e s e , only 43 persons failed to complete and return the second q u e s t i o n n a i r e . H e n c e , complete data was obtained for 173 r e s p o n d e n t s , and this reduced sample size only affected the SA and PCS items since the car and PTW TA items were contained in the initial contact q u e s t i o n n a i r e .
Eighty-six percent (n=186) of the total sample were m a l e s . All r e s p o n d e n t s were aged between 17 and 63 years (median = 2 9 ) . Thirteen percent of the total sample were classified according to occupation in social class 1, 22 percent belonged to social class 2, 45 percent social class 3, 8 percent social class 4 and 1 percent (n=3) social
class 5. Nine percent of the sample (n=19) were in full-time further or higher e d u c a t i o n , while 1 percent (n=2) were unemployed and had had no previous form of employment which could be used for c l a s s i f i c a t i o n .
3.6 Results and Discussion
F u r t h e r m o r e , a quantitative report of the DFA analyses performed is avoided and only the resulting interpretations presented. H o w e v e r , the major d i s c r i m i n a t i o n s are accompanied by the frequency d i s t r i b u t i o n s of responses to the relevant items. General o b s e r v a t i o n s will be made of the results with each p r e s e n t a t i o n .
The results obtained are considered for each area of enquiry in turn.
The groups of respondents concerned do n o t , u n f o r t u n a t e l y , lend t h e m s e l v e s to an easily definable and recognisable a b b r e v i a t i o n , and so the terminology of "Group 1", "Group 2 " , ..., "Group 5" is employed. Whilst attempts are frequently made to re-describe the groups involved, the reader is reminded of the existence of Section 3.4, which should serve as a quick and easy reference for this p u r p o s e .
The quota sampling technique employed naturally meant that no prior control could be exerted on the experience of the subjects who were recruited. U n f o r t u n a t e l y , the level and nature of the motorcycling e x p e r i e n c e s obtained did not enable an even distribution of respondents in the five groups intended for a n a l y s i s . Indeed, of the 216 motorists s u r v e y e d , only nine could be assigned to Group 2 and only eleven could be assigned to Group 3. Such sample sizes were considered insufficient for consideration in the following m a t e r i a l . H e n c e , by the necessary inclusion of only data for Group 1 ( n = 7 7 ) , Group 4 (n=65) and Group 5 ( n = 3 9 ) , it was not possible to test the second study h y p o t h e s i s as stated in Section 3.3. (Fifteen of the r e s p o n d e n t s surveyed were present or past users of PTWs but had operated a PTW for less than 18 months. This makes the 216 respondents in all. This data was also unanalysed other than for a Principal Components Analysis on total driver opinion described in Section 3 . 6 . 6 ) .
3.6.2 Equality of Group Assignment
To ensure that the groups did not differ in terms of a g e , sex and social c l a s s , a two-way ANOVA for the non-metric factors of sex and
