Motor Vehicle Crashes and Land Use: Empirical Analysis from Hawaii

At first glance, the relationship between crashes and land use appears obvious. Various types of land uses tend to generate and attract different types of trips, and trip-making behavior affects the nature and volume of traffic. As the use of land intensifies, it does not seem unreasonable to expect that the potential exposure to crashes would also increase. Yet upon closer inspection, it is evident that crashes are more a function of the characteristics of drivers and travelers than the underlying uses of land. Using comprehensive police crash data linked to a land use database, the relationships between land use and automobile crashes in Hawaii are investigated. Recent developments in geographic information system technology and the availability of spatial databases provide a rich source of information with which to investigate the relationships between crashes and the environments in which they occur. Although the patterns in terms of crashes and the underlying use of land are difficult to describe, the implications of these findings for planners, developers, and those interested in traffic safety are apparent.