Transcript The relationship of “driving while suspended” (DWS) to the

Take the bus?
or get busted?
The relationship of “driving while
suspended” (DWS) to the availability of
public bus transportation
Phil Amerine and Dr. Angela Crews,
Washburn University
Research Questions
• Is being arrested for “DWS” related to the
accessibility and availability of public transportation?
– Is there a difference between those arrested for DWS and
those not arrested for DWS in the distance they live from
public transportation?
– Is being arrested for DWS related to whether public
transportation was available?
• Are other factors (sex, race, age, season) related to
being arrested for DWS?
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Issues with DWS
• Drivers with suspended/revoked licenses are
involved in a disproportionate number of fatal
accidents each year (Vendel, 2006)
• Licenses revocation/suspension is strongly related
to DUI and revocation/suspension may reduce
DUI recidivism (Morse & Elliot, 1992)
• 75% of drivers with revoked/suspended licenses
still drive illegally (Morse & Elliott, 1992)
• In Kansas, DWS can result in confinement,
which is costly (about $65 per day)
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Public Transportation
• Public transportation is an
alternative to driving illegally
• Only 4 cities in KS have public
transportation
• KSDOT does not fund urban
public transportation
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Illegal Driving in KS
• 1st offense: up to $1000, 6 mos., or both
• 2nd offense: up to 1 year, $2500, or both
• 3rd offense: mandatory minimum of 90 days and
$1500
• License suspension : DUI, refusing BAC,
reckless driving, failure to appear, failure to pay
• Judge orders, files with Dept. of Revenue
• DOR notifies defendant & suspends license
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Theory
• DWS decisions are made in certain situational
contexts
• DWS is an “involvement decision” (Clarke & Cornish,
1986) that occurs over time because the probability
of apprehension on the first offense is very low
• Costs of compliance also are considered along
with costs of non-compliance (Blackwell, Grasmick &
Cochran, 1994)
• However, the DWS thought processes change as
individuals age (Sampson & Laub, 2005)
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Rational Choice & DWS
• License suspension alters the behavior of most
drivers to some degree (Donovan, 1989)
– Reducing driving, driving more carefully
• The provision of benefits for compliance may
help encourage compliance
– Cost of noncompliance = criminal sanctions
– Cost of compliance = finding alternate transportation
($), losing employment, etc.
• Public transportation could reduce cost of
compliance
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Design & Method
• Quasi-experimental cohort design
– All adult residents of Lawrence, KS issued notices
of non-compliance in the 2004 calendar year
– List from Lawrence Municipal Court
– Bus routes, schedules from Lawrence Transit
System
• Random selection of 70 non-compliants (2004)
– Address, sex, race, age, and whether arrested in
2005 or 2006 for DWS, if arrested, date & time of
arrest
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Variables
• Dependent variable: DWS arrest (yes/no)
• Independent variables:
– Distance of residence from nearest bus stop
• Measures accessibility
– Age in years, sex, race
– Date of arrest (if arrested)
• Measures “season” (winter, spring, summer, fall)
– Time of arrest (if arrested)
• Measures “availability” of public transportation
(available or not available)
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Analysis & Results
• Sample of 70 non-compliant drivers:
– 60% male
– 70% white, 17% black, 4% Hispanic, 9% other
– Average age of 28
– Lived an average of .15 miles from bus stop
• 17% of the sample was arrested for DWS
during 2005 or 2006
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Arrests for DWS
• 58% of arrests made while bus transportation
was “available”
• 42% of arrests made during summer months
• 67% of those arrested were male
• 42% of those arrested were black, 42% were
white, 16% were “other”
• Average age of 23
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Accessibility
• Is being arrested for DWS related to the
accessibility of public transportation?
– Is there a difference in the average distance
those arrested for DWS (.14) and those not
arrested for DWS (.15) live from public
transportation?
• NO, these two groups do not differ in the
distance they live from a bus stop (t-test: p< .976)
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Availability
• Is being arrested for DWS related to whether public
transportation was available?
– Availability: 58% of arrests at times when buses were
available
• What factors are related to being arrested at a time when
public transportation was available?
– Sex? All of the females were arrested during times when
buses were available, most men were not
– Race? No relationship
– Age? Those arrested for DWS while buses were available
were about 22 years old while those arrested while buses
were not available were about 28 years old (approached
significance, p<.08)
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Other Factors
• Are other factors (sex, race, age) related to
being arrested for DWS?
– Sex not related
– Race IS related; non-Whites more likely
(p<.02, weak to moderate association, 8% of
variation explained)
– Difference between ages of those who were
arrested (23) and those who were not arrested
(28) approached significance (p=.08)
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Summary
• Distance of residence from the nearest
bus stop, availability, and sex were not
factors in arrests for DWS
• Age may be related (p=.08) to arrest
• Race was related to arrest
– While non-Whites were 30% of the sample,
they were 58% of those arrested
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Discussion
• Only 17% of suspended drivers arrested for DWS
– It is not known how many of the suspended drivers in the sample actually
committed DWS (probably MUCH higher)
• Season, distance, and availability unrelated to DWS
– Individual situational factors such as employment, income, and the
availability of alternative transportation likely contribute to a person’s
decision to DWS
• Non-whites more likely to DWS?
– Or more likely to be SWD (stopped while driving)?
– May also be related to economic, social, or cultural factors
– Perceived costs of compliance may outweigh perceived costs of noncompliance
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Recommendations
• To reduce DWS, increase the costs of noncompliance
or reduce the costs of compliance
• Permanent revocation of licenses
• Provide free or reduced cost bus tickets to those with
suspended licenses (on certain conditions)
• Encourage carpools
• “Involvement decision” may apply in cost-benefit
analysis (likelihood of apprehension is low)
• Additional study (surveys or interviews)
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