Representativeness of Czech In-Depth Accident Data

• Main Authors: Robert Zůvala, Kateřina Bucsuházy, Veronika Valentová, Jindřich Frič
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-05-01
• Series: Safety
• Subjects: representativeness; weighting methods; raking procedure; accident analysis; in-depth study; accident investigation
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2313-576X/7/2/40

Road accident occurrence is often the result of driving system malfunctions, and road safety improvements need to focus on all basic driving components—the vehicle, road infrastructure, and road users. Only focusing on one type of improvement does not necessarily lead to increased road safety. Instead, improved road safety requires comprehensive measures that consider all factors using in-depth accident analysis. The proposed measures, based on the findings from in-depth data that have general applicability, are necessary to determine whether data gained from in-depth studies adequately represent national statistics. This article aims to verify the representativeness of the Czech In-Depth Accident Study at a national level. The main contribution of this article lies in the use of a weighting method (specifically, a raking procedure) to generalise research results and render them applicable to a whole population. The obtained results could be beneficial at the national level, in the Czech Republic, and also on the supranational level. The applicability of this method on accident data is verified; thus, the method can be applied also in other countries or can be used to verify the applicability of conclusions from the Czech in-depth study also on a European or worldwide level.