Jerky driving—An indicator of accident proneness?

This study uses continuously logged driving data from 166 private cars to derive the level of jerks caused by the drivers during everyday driving. The number of critical jerks found in the data is analysed and compared with the self-reported accident involvement of the drivers. The results show that the expected number of accidents for a driver increases with the number of critical jerks caused by the driver. Jerk analyses make it possible to identify safety critical driving behaviour or “accident prone” drivers. They also facilitate the development of safety measures such as active safety systems or advanced driver assistance systems, ADAS, which could be adapted for specific groups of drivers or specific risky driving behaviour.

Research highlights
► We analyzed the amount of critical jerks caused by drivers during normal driving.
► We examined the relationship between accident involvements and jerky driving.
► The risk of being involved in accidents increases with increased amount of critical jerks.
► Critical jerks are an indicator of accident prone drivers.