Correlation between Crash Avoidance Maneuvers and Injury Severity Sustained by Motorcyclists in Single-Vehicle Crashes

Method

Ten-year crash data of single-vehicle motorcycle crashes from the General Estimates Systems (GES) were analyzed, using partial proportional odds models (i.e. generalized ordered logit models). Results The modelling results show that “braking (no lockup)” is associated with a higher probability of increased severity while “braking (lockup)” is associated with a higher probability of decreased severity, under all pre-crash conditions. “Steering” is associated with a higher probability of reduced injury severity when other vehicles are encroaching, while it is correlated with high injury severity under other conditions. “Braking and steering” is significantly associated with a higher probability of low severity under “animal encounter and object presence”, while it is surprisingly correlated with high injury severity when motorcycles are travelling off the edge of the road.