Research Seeks to Identify Traits of Safe, Younger Drivers

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Initial research into the potential of developing a “Younger Driver Assessment Tool”—one that would identify younger drivers who exhibit many of the same characteristics as safe, older commercial drivers—was released in a report by the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI).

To assess the feasibility of identifying safe younger drivers, ATRI reviewed existing scientific literature on driver characteristics and the associated safety outcomes. The report summarizes the psychology literature on early adulthood, and how characteristics of this age group relate to driving safety, ATRI said in a news release. The research was conducted in conjunction with Dr. Monica Luciana, professor of psychology at the University of Minnesota.

Individual traits that can reliably predict driver safety outcomes—personality, health, and cognition—are identified and discussed in the report. The next phase of ATRI’s research will involve assembling the relevant measures of the identified predictive factors and conducting a beta test of the assessment tool on a small sample of both veteran and entry-level drivers, the institute said in its news release, issued Aug. 9.  Results of the beta test will determine if a larger scale study is warranted.

“The potential to screen for the safest candidates among younger new entrants is an exciting step in the industry’s workforce expansion. We look forward to working with ATRI in the development and testing of the Younger Driver Assessment Tool,” said Greg Koepel, vice president, workforce development and administration, Roehl Transport, Inc., Marshfield, Wisconsin.

ATRI, based in Marietta, Georgia, is the trucking industry’s 501c3 not-for-profit research organization.

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To download the “Younger Driver Assessment Tool Tech Memo 1,” go to the ATRI website, http://atri-online.org/.

 

 

 

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One Comment

  1. Thank you for running this story and for referencing Roehl Transport & Greg Koepel. Would you please link to our website in the story so your readers can easily find us? Our site is Roehl.Jobs.

    Thank you in advance!

    Lucas Heart
    Marketing & Communications Manager

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