Study on Driving Behavior of Public Transport Drivers in Kerala

Abstract

A lot of crashes involving heavy vehicles have been reported over the years in Kerala. Faulty driving behavior is widely regarded as the major cause of such crashes. This study considers the drivers’ perceptions and their socio-demographic background to understand the behavioral variations. The study is done based on a questionnaire survey on public transport operators from which their behavioral characteristics are noted. The study area is divided into three parts namely, North, Central and South Kerala with a fixed sample at each of these regions. The sample size is fixed based on Bill Godden’s method for infinite population. Accordingly, a sample of 384 vehicles was surveyed from each region. Thus, data for a total of 1,152 public transport vehicles were taken from all three regions namely North, South, and Central Kerala. From this sample, the variations in violations, errors and lapses among drivers are noted based on various causative factors. Analyses of these behavioral factors are done to study the influence on aberrant behavior and accident occurrence in public transport vehicle plying in Kerala. A linear regression model is developed to state the importance of causative factors in the occurrence of crashes.