Analysis of Studies on Traffic Crashes Involving the Elderly: Asurvey of methods, influencing factors, andperspectives

Ageing is an inevitable trend of population development. It is vital to study the traffic safety of elderly populations. Although much literature has been produced about this issue, problems such as an inconsistent definition of the elderly and scattered research objectives still exist. This study uses crash data analysis to find the conclusions, limitations and development directions of this research by retrieving accident analysis studies of the elderly from 2015 to the present. This study reviews crash analysis methods and crash characteristics and crash-influencing factors among the elderly. Most of the current studies analysing traffic accidents in the elderly come from the United States, China and Korea. The literature typically defines the elderly as those above 60 or 65 years old. Common research methods include statistical and machine learning methods. Key factors influencing traffic safety among the elderly are factors related to crash victims, vehicles and the road environment. Future research directions are proposed to investigate the heterogeneity of elderly populations in greater depth.