Abstract
This study is based on data from coach accidents in France from 1980 to 1997. The database covers 70 severe real-world coach accidents. Only coach accidents with at least one severely injured person in the vehicle are considered.
This accident research study was performed by the CEESAR team in the Picardy region of France. The study compares similar accidents and examines the medical results for injured passengers in double-decker and one-level coaches. This paper takes into account the most frequent main impacts for coaches, namely tipover and frontal impact.
It presents the severe injury distribution between the upper and lower levels in double-decker coaches. The comparison is made for all injury severities and for fatalities. The injury coding system is based on the 1990 "Abbreviated injury scale".
In the conclusion, we show the main safety countermeasures to improve safety in these types of coach accidents.