Analysis of changes in the accident hazard for the elderly in road traffic compared to demographic changes and possibilities of supporting the elderly mobility

The development of electric cars will contribute to increased mobility of the elderly, because electric vehicles are definitely easier to be driven and handled. Therefore, the planned directions of development of some categories of electric vehicles should include the providing of such vehicles with special safety systems and driving aids for the elderly. It would be recommendable to base this on the conclusions that might be drawn from an analysis of the age structure of road traffic participants and of the effects of road accidents with the elderly. Additionally, the accident hazard in Poland is characterized by the highest numbers of the killed in road accidents in the EU. The possibilities of inferring reasonable conclusions in this field from a comparative analysis of changes in the accident hazard in two age groups, i.e. 18-24 and 60+, have been shown. The hazard indicator values have also been referred to the overall values calculated for all the age groups taken as a whole. The territorial distribution of the accident hazard for the elderly has also been sought. For this purpose, the method of ranking of individual regions (defined as voivodships, i.e. administrative province areas) has been used. The knowledge of such a distribution may facilitate the planning and reasonable adaptation of road traffic control methods as well as the development of the road rescue service system with taking into account the specificity of the elderly.