Unique study on child road-traffic injuries is being conducted in Russia

11 December 2014

Unique study on child road-traffic injuries is being conducted in Russia.

Even the preliminary results show how risky child transportation has become. Most accidents that involve children (76 percent) happen due to car collisions. Ninety five percent of the accidents happen on asphalt road; 79 percent – in dry weather; 82 percent – in daylight hours; 77 percent – in fine weather. Average speed during the accidents is 51 km/h. That means that the majority of the car accidents involving children happens under conditions ideal for driving.

The average age of the driver in such accidents is 32 years. Seven percent of the cases the driver has previously been prosecuted with driver’s license revocation or arrest. Four percent of the cases involve drunk drivers.

It is already possible to identify the risk group at this point in the study. Most often, such accidents involve children from four to eight years. Forty six percent of the cases they get head injuries.

Study objective is to identify all the circumstances related to child passenger injuries. Many of the parents do not understand that the life of their child depends not only on the skill of the driver, but on a variety of safety devices aimed at protecting said life.

Where the car is hit according to statistic? 

Based on the Road Safety Russia NGO research

Some are still carrying their kids in their arms – hey, what can be safer than the mother’s embrace? However, in case of a 60 km/h collision child’s downward force increases drastically, seeing that it equals mass times acceleration. There are no arms that can hold on to that.

Quite often, in order to avoid unnecessary expenses on child safety seats parents buy special covers for seat belts that redirect the belts from child’s neck. However, in this case the lower seat belt, being higher than it is supposed to, can cause severe abdominal trauma in case of an accident. Then there are cheap child safety seats, a.k.a. plain old plastic run-of-the-mills that give no safety guarantee for the passenger.

Where the child seats are usually placed in the car?

Based on the Road Safety Russia NGO research

To dot the i’s and cross the t’s General Directorate for Road Safety of the Russian Ministry of Interior, Moscow region Traffic police, the Ministry of Health and Road Safety Russia decided to conduct such a study. What is more, all the data comes directly from hospitals and accident sites. Almost in 54 percent of the accidents children are protected by special safety devices: in 40 percent child safety seats, in 4.5 percent special boosters, in 3 percent – safety cradles.  Thirty seven percent of the cases there are no safety devices in play. However, in 24 percent of the cases children are buckled-up. In 4.5 percent of the cases special seat belt covers are used. In 13 percent of the cases, children are not protected even by a seat belt.

Only five child safety seats has been considered unfit so far – they were broken during the accidents indicating their low quality. However, the integrity of the seat mounting has never been compromised. Admittedly, in many cases safety seats are secured by seat belts, therefore it’s too early to draw any conclusions.

 “Children’s passive safety has great significance” said Road Safety Russia president Natalia Agre to Rossiiskaya Gazeta. Clear picture of the accident, its causes and consequences should precede any conclusions.  That’s why such a unique study is being held in Russia – its results will provide certain recommendations on how to improve the current legislation. Such based on the Russian experience recommendations, which we will be able to give in nine months, might form a completely new vision of international passive safety. 

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