The social and economic cost of traffic accidents with pedestrians and cyclists: Case study of Santa Catarina state, Brazil

Abstract

The social costs resulting from traffic accidents are high and have a direct impact on the economy. Among the main victims of these accidents are cyclists and pedestrians, consisting of the most vulnerable users. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to develop a methodology to estimate the costs generated due to traffic accidents involving pedestrians and cyclists. This study had as reference data contained in the Health Information system which part is from National Ministry of Health, considering fatal and non-fatal accident victims. For the composition of the costs of non-fatal victims, two approaches were used, one considering only medical-hospital expenses and the other also considering indirect costs. For fatal accidents the Human Capital method was used, using income provided by the IBGE as a basis for calculations. As a result, different cost approaches were obtained for each type of occurrence (injuries and fatalities), demonstrating the charge resulting from the high number of accidents. The results obtained can be used to subsidize the urban strategic planning and safety policies on commuting.