Motorcycle door crashes: An evaluation of crash characteristics in Taipei City, Taiwan

OBJECTIVES: Crashes due to motorcyclists colliding with an open car door can cause devastating injuries. In Taiwan, such crashes typically occur when the motorcyclist is travelling alongside a row of parallel-parked cars, and a driver suddenly opens the door in front of or next to the motorcycle without determining whether it is safe to do so. Injuries resulting from motorcycle door crashes tend to be severe. This study examined the factors that contribute to motorcycle door crashes. METHODS: By using linked data from the National Traffic Crash Dataset and Emergency Medical Service for Taipei City for the years 2010–2015, this study estimated a mixed multinomial logit model to predict the likelihood of three types of door crashes: driver-door crashes, left passenger-door crashes, and right passenger-door crashes. RESULTS: Data on 8237 motorcycle door crashes were extracted from the two datasets and matched. The results from the mixed multinomial logit model revealed that illegal parking, older car occupants, teenage car occupants, intoxicated car occupants and motorcyclists, and motorcycle speeding contribute to driver-door crashes; and female passengers and taxis as the type of vehicle involved in crash are associated with left passenger-door crashes. CONCLUSIONS: Our study suggested that controlling motorcycle speed, and prosecuting illegal parking and drink driving/riding may constitute effective countermeasures. The “Dutch Reach” intervention measure, which is commonly adopted in Europe for bicycle door crashes, should be applied in Taiwan to curb motorcycle door crashes, especially for elderly car occupants.