Best Practices for Responding to and Evaluating Fatal Crashes

Each time a crash results in a fatality, Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) staff conduct a fatality investigation to identify key characteristics and circumstances that may have contributed to the crash. Each UDOT Region bears the responsibility of conducting these investigations, and each does so using their own methods, which results in various levels of detail and diversity in the specific data collected. UDOTs Traffic and Safety Division has not historically mandated specifically how these investigations should be conducted, however they do provide guidance and conduct department-wide reviews of each fatal crash. Currently many states are employing state of the art techniques to streamline their fatality investigations and improve data comparability. In many cases agencies are using a checklist to ensure that all necessary and appropriate data is collected at the scene and that subsequent follow-up information is not overlooked, as often happens after the initial report is submitted. This research will examine and summarize national best practices for collecting fatal crash data at the time of the crash and provide UDOT with recommendations and a template that will enable all region offices to get on the same page with their data collection efforts. This will ensure that the UDOT Traffic and Safety Division gets accurate and appropriate depth on fatal crash data.

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Active
• Funding: $34945
• Contract Numbers:

  238749

• Sponsor Organizations:

  Utah Department of Transportation

  Research and Innovation Division
  Salt Lake City, UT  United States  84114
• Managing Organizations:

  Utah Department of Transportation

  Research and Innovation Division
  Salt Lake City, UT  United States  84114
• Project Managers:

  Jensen, Travis

• Performing Organizations:

  Avenue Consultants, Incorporated

  6575 South Redwood Road,. Suite 101
  Taylorsville, UT  United States  84123
• Principal Investigators:

  Burbidge, Shaunna

• Start Date: 20230201
• Expected Completion Date: 20231231
• Actual Completion Date: 0

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Best practices; Crash analysis; Crash data; Data collection; Fatalities
• Identifier Terms: Utah Department of Transportation
• Subject Areas: Data and Information Technology; Highways; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01874622
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: Utah Department of Transportation
• Contract Numbers: 238749
• Files: RIP, STATEDOT
• Created Date: Feb 26 2023 10:25PM