Reckless driving in Portugal: the deterrent impact of increased penalties on traffic accidents

Detalhes bibliográficos
Autor(a) principal: Tavares, António F.
Data de Publicação: 2005
Outros Autores: Mendes, Sílvia M., Costa, Cláudia S.
Tipo de documento: Artigo
Idioma: eng
Título da fonte: Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos)
Texto Completo: http://hdl.handle.net/10198/21463
Resumo: Portugal is among the few OECD countries that are often cited as examples every time traffic statistics are published. Unfortunately, the reason is that it tops the charts on accident and mortality figures. Also unfortunate is that the underlying causes remain a matter of speculation. This paper is the first systematic look at traffic policy in Portugal. It is the first of three parts1 of a government-funded effort at sponsoring an empirical analysis of Portuguese policy on road mortality. Given that temporal statistics on traffic accidents have only recently begun to be collected, we are limited to traffic policies that have been implemented in the 1990s. We are also limited to aggregate data, given that there is no systematic collection on individual-level data in Portugal. Specifically, we examine the impact of a sentencing policy that raised the statutory penalties for reckless driving and other traffic offences in the mid 1990s. In 1995, Portugal ranked second only to Hungary in fatality rates on motorways (Page 2001). Were Portuguese drivers deterred by this increase in the severity? To what extent is this policy change associated with a reduction in the accident rate resulting in injury? It has become commonplace in criminology, especially among European criminologists (Tonry 2005), to almost expect an absence of a relationship between criminal acts and punishment, thus, of course contradicting deterrence theory.
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spelling Reckless driving in Portugal: the deterrent impact of increased penalties on traffic accidentsPortugal is among the few OECD countries that are often cited as examples every time traffic statistics are published. Unfortunately, the reason is that it tops the charts on accident and mortality figures. Also unfortunate is that the underlying causes remain a matter of speculation. This paper is the first systematic look at traffic policy in Portugal. It is the first of three parts1 of a government-funded effort at sponsoring an empirical analysis of Portuguese policy on road mortality. Given that temporal statistics on traffic accidents have only recently begun to be collected, we are limited to traffic policies that have been implemented in the 1990s. We are also limited to aggregate data, given that there is no systematic collection on individual-level data in Portugal. Specifically, we examine the impact of a sentencing policy that raised the statutory penalties for reckless driving and other traffic offences in the mid 1990s. In 1995, Portugal ranked second only to Hungary in fatality rates on motorways (Page 2001). Were Portuguese drivers deterred by this increase in the severity? To what extent is this policy change associated with a reduction in the accident rate resulting in injury? It has become commonplace in criminology, especially among European criminologists (Tonry 2005), to almost expect an absence of a relationship between criminal acts and punishment, thus, of course contradicting deterrence theory.NEAPP Working Paper SeriesBiblioteca Digital do IPBTavares, António F.Mendes, Sílvia M.Costa, Cláudia S.2020-04-03T10:33:23Z20052005-01-01T00:00:00Zinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersioninfo:eu-repo/semantics/articleapplication/pdfhttp://hdl.handle.net/10198/21463engTavares, António F.; Mendes, Sílvia M.; Costa, Cláudia S. (2005). Reckless driving in Portugal: the deterrent impact of increased penalties on traffic accidents. Braga: Universidade do Minho.info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccessreponame:Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos)instname:Agência para a Sociedade do Conhecimento (UMIC) - FCT - Sociedade da Informaçãoinstacron:RCAAP2023-11-21T10:48:47Zoai:bibliotecadigital.ipb.pt:10198/21463Portal AgregadorONGhttps://www.rcaap.pt/oai/openaireopendoar:71602024-03-19T23:12:55.829869Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos) - Agência para a Sociedade do Conhecimento (UMIC) - FCT - Sociedade da Informaçãofalse
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv Reckless driving in Portugal: the deterrent impact of increased penalties on traffic accidents
title Reckless driving in Portugal: the deterrent impact of increased penalties on traffic accidents
spellingShingle Reckless driving in Portugal: the deterrent impact of increased penalties on traffic accidents
Tavares, António F.
title_short Reckless driving in Portugal: the deterrent impact of increased penalties on traffic accidents
title_full Reckless driving in Portugal: the deterrent impact of increased penalties on traffic accidents
title_fullStr Reckless driving in Portugal: the deterrent impact of increased penalties on traffic accidents
title_full_unstemmed Reckless driving in Portugal: the deterrent impact of increased penalties on traffic accidents
title_sort Reckless driving in Portugal: the deterrent impact of increased penalties on traffic accidents
author Tavares, António F.
author_facet Tavares, António F.
Mendes, Sílvia M.
Costa, Cláudia S.
author_role author
author2 Mendes, Sílvia M.
Costa, Cláudia S.
author2_role author
author
dc.contributor.none.fl_str_mv Biblioteca Digital do IPB
dc.contributor.author.fl_str_mv Tavares, António F.
Mendes, Sílvia M.
Costa, Cláudia S.
description Portugal is among the few OECD countries that are often cited as examples every time traffic statistics are published. Unfortunately, the reason is that it tops the charts on accident and mortality figures. Also unfortunate is that the underlying causes remain a matter of speculation. This paper is the first systematic look at traffic policy in Portugal. It is the first of three parts1 of a government-funded effort at sponsoring an empirical analysis of Portuguese policy on road mortality. Given that temporal statistics on traffic accidents have only recently begun to be collected, we are limited to traffic policies that have been implemented in the 1990s. We are also limited to aggregate data, given that there is no systematic collection on individual-level data in Portugal. Specifically, we examine the impact of a sentencing policy that raised the statutory penalties for reckless driving and other traffic offences in the mid 1990s. In 1995, Portugal ranked second only to Hungary in fatality rates on motorways (Page 2001). Were Portuguese drivers deterred by this increase in the severity? To what extent is this policy change associated with a reduction in the accident rate resulting in injury? It has become commonplace in criminology, especially among European criminologists (Tonry 2005), to almost expect an absence of a relationship between criminal acts and punishment, thus, of course contradicting deterrence theory.
publishDate 2005
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv 2005
2005-01-01T00:00:00Z
2020-04-03T10:33:23Z
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dc.identifier.uri.fl_str_mv http://hdl.handle.net/10198/21463
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dc.relation.none.fl_str_mv Tavares, António F.; Mendes, Sílvia M.; Costa, Cláudia S. (2005). Reckless driving in Portugal: the deterrent impact of increased penalties on traffic accidents. Braga: Universidade do Minho.
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