Maryland Department of Transportation
State Highway Administration
Office of Traffic and Safety
Driving Safely in
Maryland
“In 2008, there were 10,311
older driver-involved
crashes, accounting for
10.3% of the total crashes in
Maryland.”
Introduction
In this fact sheet older drivers are defined as being 65 years old or
older. There were a total of 78 older driver-involved fatal crashes,
which accounted for 13.2% of all fatal crashes in Maryland. In 2008,
there were 10,311 older drivers involved in 9,863 crashes, accounting
for 10.3% of the total crashes in Maryland. Fifty-one older drivers were
killed in crashes and a total of 6,537 persons were injured.
Summary
‰
In 2008, there were 10,311 older drivers involved in crashes,
accounting for 10.3% of the total crashes in Maryland.
‰
In 2008, 63% of the fatal and 61% of the total older driverinvolved crashes occurred between the hours of 8AM and
4PM.
‰
Over one-half (56%) of the fatal crashes occurred on state
highways.
‰
In 2008, 47.1% of the vehicles of older drivers involved in
fatal crashes were on roads with posted speed limit of 40 MPH
or less.
“In 2008, 47.1% of the
vehicles of older drivers
involved in fatal crashes
were on roads with posted
speed limit of 40 MPH or
less.”
‰
In 2008, 55% of the older drivers killed were 70-79 years old
and 71% were male.
‰
Alcohol/Drugs were noted to be involved in 11.5% of fatal
older driver-involved crashes.
‰
In 2008, 24% of the passengers involved and 86% of
passengers killed were 70 years old or older.
‰
The older driver fatal crash rate per 100Million Vehicle Miles
Traveled and fatal crash rate per 10,000 population was
highest in Dorchester County, 0.76 and 0.94 respectively.
Maryland Highway Safety Office
7491 Connelley Drive, Hanover, Maryland 21076
3
Maryland Traffic Safety Facts 2008 - Older Drivers
Older Driver-Involved Crash Trend and Severity
“In 2008, there were 10,311
older drivers involved in
9,863 crashes, accounting
for 10.3% of the total
crashes in Maryland.”
‰
‰
In 2008, there were 10,311 older drivers involved in 9,863 crashes,
accounting for 10.3% of the total crashes in Maryland.
There were a total of 78 older driver-involved fatal crashes, which
accounted for 13.2% of all fatal crashes in Maryland. In 2008, 51
older drivers were killed in crashes, and a total of 6,537 persons
were injured.
Table 1: Older Driver-Involved Fatalities, 1999-2008
Total
Fatalities
‰
Number
Number
598
617
661
661
651
643
624
651
615
592
114
104
113
108
108
104
96
112
79
85
Percent
Older Drivers Killed
Number
Percent
61
59
68
73
65
65
55
63
40
10.2
9.6
10.3
11.0
10.0
10.1
8.8
9.7
6.5
8.6
19.1
16.9
17.1
16.3
16.6
16.2
15.4
17.2
12.8
14.4
51
Property damage only crashes accounted for 56% of the total older
driver-involved crashes.
Table 2: Older Driver-Involved Crashes by Crash Severity, 2004-2008
Fatal
Crashes
Year
Fatalities
Injury
Crashes
Number
Injured
PDO
Total
2004
90
104
4,348
6,726
5,788
10,226
2005
90
96
4,373
6,916
5,707
10,170
2006
101
112
4,484
7,116
5,761
10,346
2007
71
79
4,441
6,805
5,632
10,144
2008
78
85
4,273
6,537
5,512
9,863
Figure 1: Older Driver-Involved Crashes and Fatalities, 1999-2008
15,000
12,000
500
Older Driver Involved Crashes
400
9,000
300
6,000
200
Older DriverInvolved Fatalities
3,000
1999
100
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
Older Driver-Involved Fatalities
crashes accounted for 56%
of the total older driverinvolved crashes.”
Year
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
Older Driver-Involved Crashes
“Property damage only
Older Driver-Involved
Fatalities
Maryland Traffic Safety Facts 2008 - Older Drivers
4
Temporal Patterns
‰
‰
“In 2008, fatal older driverinvolved crashes occurred
most often on Wednesdays
(19.2%).”
Older driver-involved crashes were fairly evenly distributed
Monday thru Friday and fewer crashes on Saturday and Sunday.
In 2008, fatal older driver-involved crashes occurred most often on
Wednesdays (19.2%).
Figure 2: Older Driver-Involved Crashes by Day of Week, 2008
Fatal Crashes
Total Crashes
19.2%
15.4%
15.4%
14.4%
15.4% 16.7%
14.1%
15.6%16.4%15.9%
16.5%
12.3%
8.8%
3.8%
Sun
‰
“In 2008, 63% of the fatal
and 61% of the total older
driver-involved crashes
occurred between the hours
of 8AM and 4PM.”
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
Sun
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
In 2008, 63% of the fatal and 61% of the total older driver-involved
crashes occurred between the hours of 8AM and 4PM.
Table 3: Older Driver-Involved Crashes by Time of Day, 2008
Time of Day
12:00AM-03:59AM
04:00AM-07:59AM
08:00AM-11:59AM
12:00PM-03:59PM
04:00PM-07:59PM
08:00PM-11:59PM
Unknown
Total
Fatal Crashes
Number
Total Crashes
Percent
0
8
21
28
14
7
0
78
0.0
10.3
26.9
35.9
17.9
9.0
0.0
100.0
Number
Percent
160
597
2,529
3,480
2,386
709
2
9,863
1.6
6.1
25.6
35.3
24.2
7.2
0.0
100.0
Spatial Patterns
‰
“The vast majority of the
total and fatal older driverinvolved crashes occurred
in daylight.”
The vast majority of the total and fatal older driver-involved crashes
occurred in daylight.
Table 4: Older Driver-Involved Crashes by Illumination, 2008
Illumination
Daylight
Dawn / Dusk
Dark Lights On
Dark Lights Off
Other / Unknown
Total
Fatal Crashes
Number
Percent
62
79.5
2
2.6
6
7.7
8
10.3
0
0.0
78
100.0
Total Crashes
Number
Percent
8,004
81.2
354
3.6
1,131
11.5
340
3.4
34
0.3
9,863
100.0
5
Maryland Traffic Safety Facts 2008 - Older Drivers
‰
Nearly 60% of the total older driver-involved crashes occurred on
state or county highways, 35.5% and 23.4% respectively.
‰
Over one-half (56%) of the fatal crashes occurred on state highways.
“Nearly 60% of the total
older driver-involved
crashes occurred on state or
county highways, 35.5% and
23.4% respectively.”
Figure 3: Fatal and Total Older Driver Crashes by Route Type, 2008
Total Crashes
Fatal Crashes
CO,
2,323,
23.4%
CO, 13, 16.0%
MU, 489,
4.9%
Balt. City ,
1,277,
12.9%
MD, 45, 55.6%
MU, 1, 1%
MD,
3,526,
35.5%
Others,
708, 7.1%
Balt. City , 4, 4.9%
US, 13, 16.0%
Others, 2, 2.5%
“In 2008, 47.1% of the
vehicles of older drivers
involved in fatal crashes
were on roads with posted
speed limit of 40 MPH or
less.”
‰
IS, 553,
5.6%
US,
1,055,
10.6%
IS, 3, 3.7%
In 2008, 47.1% of the vehicles of older drivers involved in fatal
crashes were on roads with posted speed limit of 40 MPH or less.
Table 5: Vehicles Operated by Older Drivers Involved in Crashes by
Posted Speed Limit, 2008
Posted Speed
Limits (mph)
Vehicles Involved in Fatal
Crashes
Number
%
Vehicles Involved in Total
Crashes
Number
%
25 or less
2
3.9
2,046
19.8
30
3
5.9
1,577
15.3
35
7
13.7
1,831
17.8
40
12
23.5
1,508
14.6
45
4
7.8
794
7.7
50
9
17.6
784
7.6
55
12
23.5
963
9.3
60
0
0.0
10
0.1
65
2
3.9
219
2.1
Other/ Unknown
Total
0
0.0
579
5.6
51
100.0
10,311
100.0
Maryland Traffic Safety Facts 2008 - Older Drivers
6
Older Driver Age and Gender
‰
‰
“In 2008, 55% of the older
drivers killed were between
70-79 years old.”
In 2008, 55% of the older drivers killed were between 70-79 years
old.
Of all older drivers involved, those aged 80+ had the fewest crashes.
Table 6: Older Driver Information by Age, 2008
Older Driver Age
Number
‰
Total Older Drivers
Involved in Crashes
Older Driver Fatalities
Percent
Number
Percent
65-69
6
11.8
3,819
37.0
70-79
28
54.9
4,298
41.7
80+
17
33.3
2,194
21.3
Total
51
100.0
10,311
100.0
In 2008, 71% of the older drivers killed were male.
Table 7: Older Driver information by Gender, 2008
Gender
Older Driver Fatalities
Total Older Drivers Involved
in Crashes
Number
Number
Percent
Percent
Male
36
70.6
6,116
59.3
“In 2008, 71% of the older
Female
15
29.4
4,153
40.3
drivers killed were male.”
Unknown
0
0.0
42
0.4
Total
51
100.0
10,311
100.0
Alcohol/Drug Impaired Crashes
‰
“Alcohol/Drugs were noted
to be involved in 11.5% of
fatal older driver-involved
crashes and 4.4% of the total
older driver crashes.”
Alcohol/Drugs were noted to be involved in 11.5% of fatal older
driver-involved crashes and 4.4% of the total older driver crashes.
Table 8: Older Driver Crashes by Alcohol/Drug Condition, 2008
Crash Condition
Impaired
Non-Impaired
Total
Fatal Crashes
Number
Total Crashes
Percent
Number
Percent
9
11.5
432
4.4
69
88.5
9,431
95.6
78
100.0
9,863
100.0
7
Maryland Traffic Safety Facts 2008 - Older Drivers
Ages of Passengers in Vehicle of Older Drivers
“In 2008, 24% of the
passengers involved and
86% of passengers killed
were 70 years old or
older.”
‰
In 2008, 24% of the passengers involved and 86% of passengers
killed were 70 years old or older.
Table 10: Passengers in Vehicle of Older Driver by Age, 2008
Age
Passenger Fatalities
Number
Percent
Passengers Involved
Number
Percent
Under 5
0
0.0
88
2.5
5 - 9
0
0.0
258
7.3
10 - 15
0
0.0
524
14.9
16 - 19
0
0.0
218
6.2
20 - 24
0
0.0
72
2.0
25 - 29
0
0.0
62
1.8
30 - 34
0
0.0
47
1.3
35 - 39
0
0.0
61
1.7
40 - 44
0
0.0
101
2.9
45 - 49
1
7.1
126
3.6
50 - 54
1
7.1
117
3.3
55 - 59
0
0.0
116
3.3
60 - 64
0
0.0
178
5.1
65 - 69
0
0.0
298
8.5
70 - 79
4
28.6
488
13.9
80 +
8
57.1
362
10.3
Unknown
0
0.0
404
11.5
Total
14
100.0
3520
100.0
Maryland Traffic Safety Facts 2008 - Older Drivers
8
Safety Equipments Used
‰
In 2008, 87% of all older drivers involved in crashes and 69% of
older drivers killed were properly belted.
Table 11: Older Drivers Information by Safety Equipment Used, 2008
“Rear end and angle
crashes accounted for 50%
of the total older driverinvolved crashes, 29.4% and
20.6% respectively.”
Older Drivers Safety
Equipment Used
Lap Belts Only
Harnesses Only
Belt and Harness
Air Bag
Air Bag and Belts
Older Drivers Fatalities
Older Drivers Involved
Number
Number
Percent
0
0.0
Percent
68
0.7
1
2.0
114
1.1
19
37.3
7,455
72.3
4
7.8
30
0.3
16
31.4
1,556
15.1
Motorcycle Helmet
0
0.0
19
0.2
Eye Protection.
1
2.0
2
0.0
Helmet / Eye Protection
1
2.0
17
0.2
None
8
15.7
186
1.8
Other/Unknown
1
2.0
864
8.4
Total
51
100.0
10,311
100.0
Crash Types
‰ Rear end and angle crashes accounted for 50% of the total older
driver-involved crashes, 29.4% and 20.6% respectively.
‰ Angle crashes and driving in opposite direction accounted for
54% of the fatal older driver-involved crashes.
Table 12: Older Driver-Involved Crashes by Crash Type, 2008
Crash Type
Opposite Direction
Rear End
Left Turn
Right Turn
Sideswipe
Angle
Parked Vehicle
Pedestrian
Pedalcycle
Animal
Fixed Object
Other Object
Overturned
Other Non Collision
Off Road
Other/unknown
Total
Fatal Crashes
Number
Percent
20
6
0
0
2
22
0
7
0
0
13
0
3
1
3
1
78
25.6
7.7
0.0
0.0
2.6
28.2
0.0
9.0
0.0
0.0
16.7
0.0
3.8
1.3
3.8
1.3
100.0
Total Crashes
Number
Percent
1,287
2,904
127
36
659
2,034
534
248
77
64
909
52
38
20
122
752
9,863
13.0
29.4
1.3
0.4
6.7
20.6
5.4
2.5
0.8
0.6
9.2
0.5
0.4
0.2
1.2
7.6
100.0
9
Maryland Traffic Safety Facts 2008 - Older Drivers
County
“Fatal older driver-involved
crashes were highest in
Prince George’s and
Baltimore Counties, 12.8 and
11.5% respectively.”
‰
Older driver-involved crashes occurred most frequently in Baltimore
and Montgomery Counties, 17.0%, and 14.5% respectively.
‰
Fatal older driver-involved crashes were highest in Prince George’s
and Baltimore Counties, 12.8 and 11.5% respectively.
‰
The older driver fatal crash rate per 100Million Vehicle Miles
Traveled and fatal crash rate per 10,000 population was highest in
Dorchester County, 0.76 and 0.94 respectively.
Table 13: Total and Fatal Older Driver-Involved Crashes and Crash Rates
by County, 2008
Older Driver Involved Crashes
County
Allegany
“The older driver fatal crash
rate per 100Million Vehicle
Miles Traveled and fatal
crash rate per 10,000
population was highest in
Dorchester County, 0.76 and
0.94 respectively.”
Fatal
2
%
2.6
Total
108
%
Pop.
1.1
72,238
Fatal
Crash
Rate
(per
10K
pop)
0.28
VMT (mill)
813
Fatal
Crash
Rate
(per
100M
VMT)
0.25
Anne
Arundel
5
6.4
956
9.7
512,790
0.10
5,759
0.09
Baltimore
9
11.5
1,680
17.0
785,618
0.11
8,227
0.11
Calvert
0
0.0
129
1.3
88,698
0.00
765
0.00
Caroline
1
1.3
49
0.5
33,138
0.30
371
0.27
Carroll
7
9.0
253
2.6
169,353
0.41
1,273
0.55
Cecil
6
7.7
202
2.0
99,926
0.60
1,351
0.44
Charles
3
3.8
251
2.5
140,764
0.21
1,260
0.24
Dorchester
3
3.8
80
0.8
31,998
0.94
396
0.76
Frederick
2
2.6
273
2.8
225,721
0.09
2,930
0.07
Garrett
1
1.3
66
0.7
29,698
0.34
528
0.19
Harford
1
1.3
398
4.0
240,351
0.04
2,324
0.04
Howard
2
2.6
289
2.9
274,995
0.07
3,793
0.05
Kent
1
1.3
28
0.3
20,151
0.50
220
0.45
Montgomery
5
6.4
1,435
14.5
950,680
0.05
7,443
0.07
10
12.8
1,173
11.9
820,852
0.12
8,719
0.11
0.11
Prince
George's
Queen
Anne's
1
1.3
96
1.0
47,091
0.21
924
St. Mary's
3
3.8
149
1.5
101,578
0.30
822
0.36
Somerset
0
0.0
37
0.4
26,119
0.00
289
0.00
Talbot
1
1.3
136
1.4
36,215
0.28
614
0.16
Washington
5
6.4
302
3.1
145,384
0.34
2,055
0.24
Wicomico
3
3.8
255
2.6
94,046
0.32
1,008
0.30
Worcester
3
3.8
173
1.8
49,274
0.61
644
0.47
Baltimore
City
4
5.1
1,345
13.6
636,919
0.06
3,619
0.11
Total
78
100.0
9,863
100.0
5,633,597
0.14
56,147
0.14
1.
Source: * Maryland Department of Planning
Maryland Department of Transportation
State Highway Administration
Office of Traffic and Safety
Maryland Highway Safety Office
Driving Safely
in Maryland
Maryland Highway Safety Office
Last Edited on December 2, 2009
7491 Connelley Drive, Hanover, Maryland 21076