Christer Philipson, Körglädje och säkerhet i Sydväst

Jörgen Lundälv, Docent i trafikmedicin, Institutionen för kirurgisk och perioperativ vetenskap, Umeå universitet

To describe and analyze the characteristics of police vehicle crashes that occur in rural versus urban areas in

Västra Götaland County Police, Sweden.

• What is the probability that a police vehicle will be involved in a collision?

• How do we reduce the possibility of deaths and injuries by police cars?

• What causes can be identified in the investigation of police cars accidents during 1998-2007?

Our study includes all injury data registered in FIMP between February 1998 and December 31, 2007, comprising a total of 2.424 accident reports.

A total of 18 accidents involving police vehicles in which policemen sustained severe personal injuries occurred between 1998 and 2007.

The majority of these accidents, 67% (N=12), occurred in urban environments, while six occurred in rural towns.

In three cases the police vehicle had been traveling too fast in an urban intersection. Lack of attentiveness was also a cause of police car collisions in urban environments.

Two of the accidents occurred in traffic light-controlled intersections. The accidents in rural areas were caused by skidding while passing, and by driving too fast.

Four cases involved emergency responses, with the accidents occurring in intersections.

One case involved driver training (in preparation for emergency driving). Common to all the accidents was the fact that the various traffic environments in question were known and familiar to the police car drivers. The causes included the police vehicle skidding on a slippery road surface.

Asking a number of questions provides, in our view, a simple and clear picture of a police car driver's risk exposure.

A. What could happen?B. What is the worst that could happen?C. How likely is it?D. What would you do then?E. Can you prevent it from happening?F. Can it be made less serious?G. Can it be made less likely?H. Can you handle the situation if it does occur?

Västra Götaland County Police, Göteborg, Sweden

Department of Surgical and Perioperative Science, Umeå University, Sweden

The Swedish Road Administration, Borlänge, Sweden

The National Police Board, Stockholm, Sweden