A Study of Influence of Presence of a Passenger on Driving Speed

The large number of victims of road traffic accidents around the world creates a serious problem for the economy, demography, and health care. The value of global social risk calculated according via relevant method, is within 18, in Russia it is of 9,7. Statistical data shows that government activities in the Russian Federation to improve road traffic safety are effective. Over the past ten years, the core values of road traffic accident rate have been decreasing, despite the increasing level of motorisation. Federal regulations stipulate a further decrease of target social risk index by 2030 to the value of 4. Excessive speed and inconformity of the speed with specific traffic conditions are the most common cause of road traffic accidents (19 % of the total). The ideas of many urbanists (that often are not backed up by specialised research in the field of road traffic safety) to forcibly make abandon cars and reduce speed in cities cannot be implemented to full extent, although they have local positive results. The likelihood of occurrence of a road traffic accident is significantly influenced by the individual characteristics of drivers, such as age, gender, and general risk propensity. One of the factors causing road traffic accidents, especially by young drivers, is the presence of peers. They can be the cause of dangerous driving, inattention, and the driver’s desire to «show off.» Older drivers, on the contrary, become more attentive and careful in the presence of passengers. However, in the scientific literature contains also opposite results (passengers can have a positive effect on young drivers, but a negative effect on older ones). In this regard and in the context of developing recommendations on reduction of road traffic accident rate, it is relevant to study feasibility to set some restrictions for younger drivers. The objective of the work is to evaluate the influence of a passenger of the same age on driving speed for a young driver and to compare it with the influence of a passenger on an older driver. The research method was an experiment in which young drivers aged 18 to 25 years and more experienced drivers over 35 years old drove along a set route with and without a passenger, while the speed of a car was recorded. An increase in speed was revealed when most young drivers were driving with a peer passenger. Considering that most young people overestimate their ability to drive a car, violation of the speed limit under the influence of a passenger can affect the occurrence of a road traffic accident. Based on the results of the work, it is proposed to introduce a system of phased access to driving, introduce a ban on transportation of passengers until the drivers reach a certain age or gain relevant experience, and improve drivers’ training programs.