Injury risks for on-road farm equipment and horse and buggy crashes in Pennsylvania: 2010-2013.

This research analyzes road accidents in Pennsylvania from 2010 to 2013, involving farm equipment and horse buggies, to identify risk factors and suggest prevention measures. The study finds that accident rates are higher for every 100,000 population driving non-farm vehicles and horses, and prevention should not only be targeted at farm equipment and horse buggy drivers but also at other road users.

Research Methodology

• The researchers collected the data from the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) to investigate the characteristics associated with farm equipment and horse and buggy roadway crashes. The data spanned a four-year period from 2010 to 2013.
• The variables considered for analysis included the person involved in the crash, the incident characteristics, and the injury factors. These were used to identify appropriate points for injury incident prevention.

Findings and Analysis

• There were 344 farm equipment and 246 horse and buggy crashes logged in the selected timeframe, involving different numbers of vehicles and people respectively. Significant injury risks were identified for other road users interacting with these entities.
• Non-farm equipment drivers were found to have a nearly two times greater injury risk than the farm equipment operators. This suggests a higher risk exposure for general passenger vehicle drivers when on common roadways with farm equipment.
• Horse and buggy crashes posed almost three times more injury risk to the horse and buggy drivers than the operators of the other involved vehicles. This indicates a significantly increased danger for Amish and other horse and buggy drivers when involved in roadway incidents.
• The average crash rate for farm equipment was calculated to be 198.4 crashes per 100,000 farm population. For horse and buggy incidents, the crash rate was set at 89.4 crashes per 100,000 Amish population per year, demonstrating a relative frequency of these types of incidents in their respective communities.

Recommendations

• The study suggests that road safety and public health programs should target not only the operators of farm equipment and horse and buggy drivers, but also other motorists who share the road with them. This arose from the finding that these other road users face significant risk when encountering such non-standard road vehicles.
• These programs should include educative initiatives aimed at improving the understanding and preparedness of all road users to interact safely with farm equipment and horse buggies.