Details:

Creators:
Carnegie, Jon A. ; Strawderman, William Edward ; Li, Wei
Carnegie, Jon A. ; Strawderman, William Edward ; Li, Wei Less -
Corporate Creators:
Alan M. Voorhees Transportation Center
Corporate Contributors:
New Jersey. Dept. of Transportation. Bureau of Research ; United States. Federal Highway Administration
New Jersey. Dept. of Transportation. Bureau of Research ; United States. Federal Highway Administration Less -
Subject/TRT Terms:
[+]
Drivers' Licenses--Government Policy--New Jersey
Recidivists--New Jersey.
Traffic Violations--New Jersey
Confiscation
Driver Licenses
Driver Licensing
Moving Violations
Recidivism
Revocation
Suspensions
Traffic Violations

Publication/ Report Number:
FHWA NJ-2009-019
Resource Type:
Tech Report
Geographical Coverage:
New Jersey
OCLC Number:
683255622
Edition:
Final report.
Corporate Publisher:
New Jersey. Dept. of Transportation
NTL Classification:
NTL-OPERATIONS AND TRAFFIC CONTROLS-OPERATIONS AND TRAFFIC CONTROLS ; NTL-LAWS AND REGULATIONS-State Laws and Regulations ; NTL-PLANNING AND POLICY-PLANNING AND POLICY ; NTL-SAFETY AND SECURITY-SAFETY AND SECURITY ;
Abstract:
The purpose of this study was to examine the current state of practice related to driver improvement countermeasures

used in the United States and to assess the effectiveness of New Jersey’s negligent driver interventions. As part of the

study, the research team conducted a national literature review and a survey of motor vehicle agency policies in other

states to document the current state of practice related to driver improvement programs and the current state of

knowledge regarding the effectiveness of specific countermeasures. In addition, the research team obtained and

analyzed an extensive longitudinal database of driver history records to examine the effectiveness of various

countermeasures used in New Jersey to address negligent driver behavior relative to violation and crash recidivism.

This study provides important evidence that New Jersey’s program of negligent driver countermeasures is effective at

reducing violation and crash recidivism among most negligent driver subgroups in the two-year period after Motor

Vehicle Commission (MVC) intervention. Of the countermeasures used in New Jersey, the combination of license

suspension with one-year probation resulted in the greatest overall reduction in both mean violation and crash rates.

New Jersey’s driver re-education classes, which are accompanied by a three-point credit against accumulated demerit

points and one-year probation, resulted in the lowest mean violation rate reduction. Point advisory notices, which for

experienced drivers are accompanied by a concurrent assessment of negligent driver fees (MVC “insurance

surcharges”), appear to be an effective early intervention, producing substantial reductions in both violation and crash

recidivism among all driver subgroups except teen drivers who are not assessed negligent driver fees at the time of

notice issuance.

Several policy recommendations can be derived from this research. First, with regard to teen drivers, consideration

should be given to whether or not a “zero-tolerance” policy for motor vehicle violations and at-fault crashes should be

applied to teen drivers. It may be appropriate to impose license suspension as an earlier intervention if the reforms

already enacted do not result in meaningful change in teen driver safety outcomes. Second, MVC should consider

streamlining the suspension program to make it more straightforward and easier to administer. Thirdly, consideration

should be given to reviewing and reforming, New Jersey’s driver monitoring system and/or plea bargaining practices to

ensure that repeat traffic offenders are not able to use zero-point plea bargaining to avoid corrective actions that

improve safety outcomes.


Format:
PDF
Collection(s):
US Transportation Collection
Main Document Checksum:
[+]
urn:sha256:ca0b6242364d20bbfa75db4b1173f342d82b3d35ca2acde77cae77d1ae2798fa
File Type:

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