Is vehicle weight associated with risky driving behavior? Analysis of complete national records

A clear trend of shifting towards larger, heavier vehicles on roads fuels what has been described as an “arms race.” While larger, heavier vehicles have been shown to benefit the safety of users in the event of a car crash, it is likely that consumers’ experience of this increased safety will lead to behavioral adaptation towards more risky driving behavior. Using complete national data of the car fleet and police-issued speeding tickets over the course of an entire calendar year in Israel, we examined the association between vehicle mass and risky driving behavior in terms of speeding tickets. Controlling for consumers’ choice of car, our results indicate a positive association between vehicle mass and speeding tickets, suggesting that larger, heavier vehicles are associated with risky driving behavior.