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A comprehensive study of child pedestrian crash outcomes in Ghana
Emmanuel Kofi Adanu1, Richard Dzinyela2, William Agyemang3
1Alabama Transportation Institute, The University of Alabama, United States.
Insights
Child pedestrian safety is critical, as children under 10 are most at risk. Speeding, inattentive drivers, and road conditions significantly increase child pedestrian crash fatalities and injuries.
Area of Science:
- Road Safety
- Pedestrian Behavior
- Traffic Injury Prevention
Background:
- Children are highly vulnerable road users, often lacking road safety knowledge.
- Societal burden often falls on children to protect themselves despite their limitations.
- Understanding factors influencing child pedestrian crashes is crucial for effective countermeasures.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze historical child pedestrian crash data in Ghana.
- To identify factors contributing to crash involvement and injury severity.
- To inform the development of targeted safety interventions.
Main Methods:
- Utilized five years of child pedestrian (under 10 years) crash records from Ghana's Building and Road Research Institute (BRRI).
- Conducted temporal analysis to identify high-risk periods.
- Employed a random parameter multinomial logit model to analyze crash variables and outcomes.
Main Results:
- Peak crash occurrences coincide with school commuting times.
- Driver speeding and inattention significantly increase fatality risk for child pedestrians.
- Children walking, crossing roads, or in urban areas face higher risks of incapacitating injuries.
- Crashes involving male drivers are more likely to be fatal.
Conclusions:
- Temporal factors, driver behavior, and environmental conditions significantly impact child pedestrian crash outcomes.
- Findings support implementing enhanced pedestrian crossings, footbridges, and school bus services.
- Data-driven insights are vital for mitigating child pedestrian crashes in Ghana and similar regions.
Abstract:
Pedestrians are considered as one of the vulnerable road user groups. Among pedestrians of all ages, children are the most at risk. Previous studies have shown that children have inadequate knowledge of road safety and are unable to identify risks on road. Despite these limitations associated with children, society places the burden on them to protect themselves. However, to be able to adequately address child pedestrian safety issues there is the need to understand the factors that influence their crash involvement and severity of injury they sustain. To address this gap, this study performed a comprehensive analysis of historical crash data in Ghana to find holistic countermeasures for these crashes. The study used five years of child pedestrian (below 10 years) crash records obtained from the Building and Road Research Institute (BRRI) in Ghana. A temporal analysis of the data revealed that the highest number of the crashes coincide with when school-going children go to and close from school. A random parameter multinomial logit model was developed to identify crash variables that are significantly associated with child pedestrian crash outcomes. The estimation results revealed that children are likely to be killed in crashes when the driver is speeding and inattentive. Also, it was found that children walking along the road, crossing the road, and those in urban areas are more susceptible to incapacitating injury crashes. Male drivers accounted for 95.8% of child pedestrian crashes, and crashes involving male drivers are 7.8% more likely to be fatal. The findings from this study provide a deeper, data-driven understanding of child pedestrian crashes and how temporal characteristics, vehicle type, location of pedestrian, traffic operation, and environmental and human factors affect crash outcomes. These findings will help in developing countermeasures like providing conspicuous pedestrian crossings, footbridges on multi-lane high-speed roadways, and the use of school buses to convey students to help mitigate the number and severity of child pedestrian crashes in Ghana, and by extension other countries in the sub-region.
