From Thestar: http://www.thestar.com/news/article/1067176--study-shows-new-immigrants-are-safer-drivers
“How much signal I need to cut across eight lanes? None? I turn now. Good luck everybody else!” screams an Asian woman before inducing a fiery car crash in the animated sitcom Family Guy.
So goes one of North America's most pervasive stereotypes: the reckless Asian driver. Of course, it's not just Asians.
“Foreign drivers are often characterized as irresponsible motorists,” said Dr. Donald Redelmeier, lead researcher on “Roadway crash risks in recent immigrants,” a recent study that debunks common myths about new immigrant drivers.
The University of Toronto professor found that new immigrants to Ontario were less likely to be involved in “serious motor vehicle crashes” — those that lead to hospitalization — compared to long-term provincial residents.
The study, to be published in the journal Accident Analysis and Prevention in November, examined more than 4 million Ontario drivers between 1995 and 2006, including nearly one million new immigrants.
The study defines a newly-arrived immigrant as someone who received his or her first universal health card during the study period. The immigrants were not broken down according to nationality or language spoken.
However, between 1996 and 2006, Ontario's foreign-born population increased by more than one million, with 15 per cent coming from China.
In the study period, 10,975 drivers were hospitalized after a car crash. Recent immigrants were 45 per cent less likely to be involved in a crash.
An explanation is hard to pin down. The study considers several options:
• Drivers who pose risks are inadvertently weeded out during immigrant screening procedures and not allowed into the country.
• New immigrants might take to the road less frequently than their Canadian-born neighbours.
• Immigrant drivers might motor at lower speeds.
“If I'm a newcomer to Ontario, the last thing I want is to get into trouble with the local authorities,” Redelmeier said. “I might be more mindful when I'm outside my usual environment.”
At Topline Driving School in North York, about 25 per cent of students are new immigrants, mostly from India, said co-owner Neelam Sharma.
“Their difficulties have to do with the rules — they're not very strict in other countries,” she said.
She quickly added that there are also plenty of bad drivers born in Canada. A long-term resident might have what Redelmeier calls “ego bias.”
“There is the countervailing idea that long-term residents become unduly overconfident and develop complacency,” which could explain why Ontario residents wind up in more serious accidents, Redelmeier said.
Even though the study shows new immigrants are safer on the roads, they may also be charged more on car insurance. In its rating criteria, an insurance company can account for an immigrant driver's arrival date in Canada, according to the Financial Services Commission of Ontario.
Sergey Bogdanov, a Lawrence Heights paralegal who works with Russian immigrants, said one of his clients had seven years of driving experience in Russia and a driver's licence recognized by the Ontario Ministry of Transportation, but he could only get one-way insurance after moving to Toronto two months ago.
“The best rate was $316 a month, which is a lot for a new immigrant,” Bogdanov said.
“You can be 40 years old and have had a licence for 20 years and it doesn't matter for insurance companies. You're just a new driver and they see that there is a high risk.”
“How much signal I need to cut across eight lanes? None? I turn now. Good luck everybody else!” screams an Asian woman before inducing a fiery car crash in the animated sitcom Family Guy.
So goes one of North America's most pervasive stereotypes: the reckless Asian driver. Of course, it's not just Asians.
“Foreign drivers are often characterized as irresponsible motorists,” said Dr. Donald Redelmeier, lead researcher on “Roadway crash risks in recent immigrants,” a recent study that debunks common myths about new immigrant drivers.
The University of Toronto professor found that new immigrants to Ontario were less likely to be involved in “serious motor vehicle crashes” — those that lead to hospitalization — compared to long-term provincial residents.
The study, to be published in the journal Accident Analysis and Prevention in November, examined more than 4 million Ontario drivers between 1995 and 2006, including nearly one million new immigrants.
The study defines a newly-arrived immigrant as someone who received his or her first universal health card during the study period. The immigrants were not broken down according to nationality or language spoken.
However, between 1996 and 2006, Ontario's foreign-born population increased by more than one million, with 15 per cent coming from China.
In the study period, 10,975 drivers were hospitalized after a car crash. Recent immigrants were 45 per cent less likely to be involved in a crash.
An explanation is hard to pin down. The study considers several options:
• Drivers who pose risks are inadvertently weeded out during immigrant screening procedures and not allowed into the country.
• New immigrants might take to the road less frequently than their Canadian-born neighbours.
• Immigrant drivers might motor at lower speeds.
“If I'm a newcomer to Ontario, the last thing I want is to get into trouble with the local authorities,” Redelmeier said. “I might be more mindful when I'm outside my usual environment.”
At Topline Driving School in North York, about 25 per cent of students are new immigrants, mostly from India, said co-owner Neelam Sharma.
“Their difficulties have to do with the rules — they're not very strict in other countries,” she said.
She quickly added that there are also plenty of bad drivers born in Canada. A long-term resident might have what Redelmeier calls “ego bias.”
“There is the countervailing idea that long-term residents become unduly overconfident and develop complacency,” which could explain why Ontario residents wind up in more serious accidents, Redelmeier said.
Even though the study shows new immigrants are safer on the roads, they may also be charged more on car insurance. In its rating criteria, an insurance company can account for an immigrant driver's arrival date in Canada, according to the Financial Services Commission of Ontario.
Sergey Bogdanov, a Lawrence Heights paralegal who works with Russian immigrants, said one of his clients had seven years of driving experience in Russia and a driver's licence recognized by the Ontario Ministry of Transportation, but he could only get one-way insurance after moving to Toronto two months ago.
“The best rate was $316 a month, which is a lot for a new immigrant,” Bogdanov said.
“You can be 40 years old and have had a licence for 20 years and it doesn't matter for insurance companies. You're just a new driver and they see that there is a high risk.”