Child pedestrian injury taxonomy based on visibility and action.

With data from multidisciplinary investigations of child pedestrian injuries in Chicago, a new and simpler four-category taxonomy is presented based on the process that led to the collision. Two dimensions are recognized: the visibility of the child and/or the vehicle immediately prior to the event and the rapidity of action, either movement or change in direction, of the victim or the vehicle. The taxonomy is neutral with respect to responsibility for the collision and accommodates the findings of other researchers. This classification scheme is tested empirically using objective data elements such as child gender and age and event location. It is further tested using the results of a multidisciplinary causal sequence reconstruction of each injury event, based on such factors as child's psychological character, traffic risks, driver behavior, visibility obstructions, whether the child negotiated part of the street before being struck, and child's activities immediately prior to the injury. The results show that events in the categories in this new taxonomy are distinctly different from each other, and that the structure is useful for identifying and organizing interventions.