Pedal Misapplication: Crash Characteristics and Contributing Factors

Jeya Padmanaban; Matthew Fitzgerald; Joseph Marsh

doi:10.4271/2013-01-0446

Pedal misapplication events were examined using police-reported crash data to determine crash characteristics and other contributing factors.

The study used police-reported crash data narratives from North Carolina (1994-2009) and included detailed manual review of each selected police report to identify possible pedal misapplication events. A comprehensive keyword search of all the records in the North Carolina data was performed to identify crashes most likely to be associated with pedal misapplications. The identified records were reviewed by engineers and classified as either “Yes,” “Possible,” or “No” pedal misapplication. For the “Yes” and “Possible” records, examination was made of the sequence of events leading up to the possible pedal misapplication.

Findings show that the most frequently reported pedal misapplication events include: parking, slowing, stopped, starting, and backing, which are all low-speed events.

Statistical analyses were also performed for crash characteristics such as location, road type, road condition; vehicle factors such as vehicle type, crash type; and driver factors such as travel speed, distraction, failure to keep lane, driver action prior to pedal misapplication, alcohol, fatigue and inattention.

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Pedal Misapplication: Crash Characteristics and Contributing Factors 2013-01-0446

SAE MOBILUS